Inside Attack
by CMJJ7
Summary: Sometimes a case can be personal, this is one of them.
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer: **I do not own any of the Criminal Minds characters, they belong to CBS and the writers.

**Author's Note:** I would just like to say that this is my first fanfic and it is a long, dark story. I will try to update as soon as possible, but in some cases it may take a while. I wrote parts of this back in March, but it has taken a while for me to gather and collect all of my ideas. I changed some of what I wrote, but in some cases the characters might be slightly out of character. Finally, I'm considering a sequel, but it depends on if I feel up to it, and what people think of this story first. Thanks and enjoy!

Ryan Jacobs calmly walked down the street in his suburban town. It was a cool and peaceful spring evening, and just the thing he needed to clear his mind. It had been a long day between the rough meeting at work and the fight he had just had with his girlfriend. All he wanted to do was get out for a minute and clear his head.

He took a deep breath and breathed in the cool night air. It helped him to relax and forget all of the stresses of the day. He continued on down the street, noticing that the houses on both sides of the street were quiet and most of the lights were turned off. The street was dark but he didn't mind this, as even when he was young he was never scared of the dark.

Ah yes, childhood. What he would give right now for his life to be as simple as it had been back then. Going to the park to play ball with the other kids, or just hanging out at his best friend's pool. Those were the days when life was easy. Easier than it was now. Sure, he'd get through his struggles; he had before and besides there were many people out there who had it worse than he did. He just had to suck it up, stay tough, and he'd make it through everything fine. Certainly he'd find another girlfriend –he was attractive and successful- and if he really had to, he could always quit his job and find something else. It would all work out, he was sure of it.

He had reached the end of his section of road and was now at the intersection. Given that he felt more at ease and didn't want to wander too far, Ryan decided that it was time to turn back. He turned and walked back slowly as the stress that had built up gradually dissipated.

What he failed to notice in his perpetual bliss, was the car on the other side of the intersection. It had sat there quietly in the dark watching him as he left his house, walked within twenty feet of it, and then turned around. Now the lights came on, bright, bearing into the man's back, hunting him. The man failed to notice this though, likely believing that it was just someone driving by. That would change when the tires squealed and it plowed through the intersection, the once silent car now full of life.

The man turned around and when he saw that the car was bearing down on him, he began to run for his life. He had been caught completely off-guard, just as it had been intended. The car caught up to him in no time, and continued right on through him. The driver smiled as he watched the poor man fall under the hood and the car buck up as it ran him over.

Almost as abruptly as the car had sped up, it came to a screeching stop and the driver got out. He slowly and calmly walked up to the man he had just run over. The man was still alive, but in tough shape with scratches and bruises as well as unseen internal injuries. The injured man looked up at the dark figure standing over him, fear in his eyes as he struggled to stay alive. His eyes widened as the car lights reflected off of the knife that was now hovering over him. He tried to yell for help, but it was too late.

Aaron Hotchner rested comfortably in the warmth of his own bed, his beautiful wife Haley sleeping peacefully beside him. He had just returned from another case just a few hours before, and it felt good to be in his own bed for once. It seemed like he was there less and less and what was worse, it seemed as though he saw even less of Haley.

Sure, he had some idea of what he was getting into when he took the job to help lead the FBI's Behavior Analysis Unit, but he still couldn't get over the lack of time he spent with his family. He worked odd hours and was gone for days at a time. Yes Haley had been very supportive, but he could tell that the lack of time they were spending together was beginning to take its toll on her. He didn't see her much and when he did, she just didn't seem as cheerful as she used to be.

Hotchner did what he could to help out around the house when he was home –both caring for his son and with chores- but again it was a matter of being home. Still, they both agreed that this was a change in their lives that they were still getting used to. Adjustments took time and they were both willing to put in the effort to make things work.

With that said, the time they spent away from each other caused them to miss each other very much. Every time he came home, Haley greeted him with a warm embrace and a kiss; something he always looked forward to while he was away. Tonight had been no different and after they ate as a family, and he did the dishes as she rested, they spent a peaceful evening together on the couch. It was the type of night that was rare for them and they had grown to treasure when one like it did come around.

Now it was 6:30 and he was staring at the ceiling, almost dreading that he would have to leave for work in less than two hours. He rolled onto his side and wrapped an arm around Haley, pulling her closer to him but at the same time careful not to wake her. The warmth of her body on his felt good and he didn't want to move from the spot. He rested like that for a while, just enjoying the presence of being there with her. Eventually the peaceful silence was broken by the sound of their son crying in the other room. Haley began to stir as Hotch rolled over onto his back again.

"Don't get up, I'll handle it." He told her as he kissed her and lifted himself from the bed as she gave him a grateful smile.

Hotch entered the room where his son lay noisily in his crib, obviously wanting breakfast, a diaper change, or both. He carefully lifted his son and cradled him in his arms as he carried him to the bathroom. He laid his son on the changing table and took off the dirty diaper, holding his nose with his free hand as he disposed of it. He cleaned up the mess and put on a new diaper as Haley came in with a warm bottle of milk.

"Here, you're going to be late. I'll feed him while you get ready." She offered as she picked up and held their son.

"Thanks. I love you." He said as he kissed her again.

"I know. I love you too." She smiled as she carried their son back to his room.

Maybe today would be a good day, Hotch thought to himself. After all, it had been a while since he had one of those.

Jason Gideon arrived at the Behavior Analysis Unit building in Quantico, Virginia promptly at nine as he did every morning when they weren't in the middle of a case. He had to admit, he didn't mind the extra sleep or just a day to relax. It seemed as though they had been unusually busy lately and everyone had been exhausted when they had arrived home the previous evening.

Now he sat at his desk, feet up, as he slowly sipped his coffee and scanned over the newspaper in front of him. He quickly skimmed the headlines, followed by sports and some of the other smaller sections. He wasn't really a big sports fan, but it was a good way to start up a conversation with someone and it was good to sometimes focus on something else in news other than work. Besides, if the Redskins lost again it was an easy way of teasing J.J. and keeping the mood light. Gideon glanced over the scores and found that they had won just as J.J. knocked on the doorway to his office.

"Hey J.J., the Redskins won yesterday."

"Yeah, I noticed. It's about time they started winning some games. With any luck, they might just make the playoffs." She smiled weakly before her expression turned more serious.

"So, what can I do for you?" Gideon asked noticing her expression.

"Well, I hate to bring this up but we have another case." J.J. stated as she handed him a copy of the file she was holding.

"It's what we do." Gideon said as he scanned through the papers before closing the folder and slowly rising up from his chair.

"Come on, let's round up the team." He said as he left his office and J.J. followed closely behind. She went to tell Hotch while Gideon went down to the pen to get Reid, Morgan and Elle.

Spencer Reid sat at his desk in the pen, studying the term he had just googled on the internet. "Don't stare too hard Reid, you might go blind." Morgan teased while Elle turned and glared at him. When Reid didn't answer, Morgan got up from his chair and walked over.

"Don't tell me you're looking at porn Reid, you know you're not supposed to do that on company time." He said as he leaned in to see what their boy genius was staring at. When Morgan saw that Reid was reading about the history of some ancient civilization, he rolled his eyes.

"I take that back, some good porn might just be what you need my friend." He said as he patted Reid on the shoulder and walked away just as Gideon entered the room.

"Hey guys, we've got another case." He said holding up the file folder in his hand. "Conference room in five." He said as he walked away and the team rolled their collective eyes.

"Damn, I was just starting to get over the jet lag too." Morgan said as Elle flashed him a sympathetic smile.

"Poor baby." She said just loud enough for Reid to hear, and he chuckled in response.

"Okay, so what do we have?" Hotch asked as he opened the folder J.J. placed in front of him.

"What we have is a series of murders, four now, within the past two weeks." She stated as she stood in front of them.

"Two weeks? Wow, our un-sub works fast." Morgan commented.

"All of the victims died slow painful, deaths at the hands of our un-sub. The victims were all injured in someway, enough to disable but not kill. Then our un-sub stabbed them three times, normally in the chest and stomach areas."

"Obviously he wants his victims to know who he is and he enjoys watching them suffer." Hotch said lifting his head from the file.

"That would appear to be the case. The last victim was attacked some where around one o'clock this morning. His name was Ryan Jacobs, a successful worker at an insurance company. He was found by a policeman on patrol. The early report states that it appeared he had been hit by a car before being stabbed three times in the chest. He died slowly." J.J. said as she grimaced at the last details of her speech.

"Sounds like this is one sick puppy. So where are we going this time?" Morgan asked, waiting for the response to be Montana, Maine or somewhere else in the middle of no where.

"That's the most intriguing part," J.J. said "it's happening right here."

"What do you mean here?" Elle said looking up surprised.

"All of the murders have occurred within a ten mile radius of our building." Gideon answered calmly.


	2. Chapter 2

"So we know our un-sub likes to not only kill, but to make his victims suffer. Further, he is doing his killing within a ten mile radius of the FBI building that handles these cases. Why?" Reid asked hypothetically.

"Maybe he's taunting us. He gets high on the fact that he is murdering people so close to the people who capture killers." said Morgan.

"It's possible, but I think we should focus on the victims and the crime scenes first. That should give us more insight into our un-sub." Hotchner said.

"Figure out what demographic or specific group he targets, and the condition that he leaves the crime scene in." Gideon spoke. "So we should probably survey where Mr. Jacobs was killed then. See if a clue was left behind." Elle said. "Exactly." Gideon nodded.

"Yeah, there's just one problem with that." J.J. spoke up. "What?" Hotchner turned to her. "The crime took place nine hours ago on a heavily traveled residential road. They already cleaned up the scene."

"Well, we'll just have to work with what we've got." Gideon said.

"Morgan and Elle, why don't you go get the crime scene photos from the police and look them over. See if there is anything unique or suspicious, J.J. you can help. Gideon, Reid and I will go to the scene and see if anything was left behind." Everyone nodded in agreement and they all got up and went their separate ways.

ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

Gideon, Hotchner and Reid stepped out of their SUV in what had once been a calm, innocent suburban town. Now however, there was still a police car in the area, and the crime scene remained taped off. Although it was a beautiful spring day, there was an overwhelming sense of darkness and sadness in the area. As they approached the scene, the scent of dried blood and death began to fill their noses. They stepped inside the taped off area and looked around, although there wasn't a lot to see. As J.J. had mentioned earlier, the scene had mostly been cleaned up, and the only sign of a murder was the crime scene tape and the large, red blood stain on the pavement.

"Are you the BAU team?" the officer on watch asked as he walked over.

"Yes we are. I'm agent Hotchner and these are agents Gideon and Reid."

"Nice to meet you, wish it could have been under better circumstances though." The officer frowned. "I'm Officer Richard Geary." He said shaking their hands.

"Well, what can you tell us officer?" Gideon asked.

"Not much more than you already know. The man was found by Officer Mark Henderson who was patrolling the area. He spotted a body in the road, went to check it out, found that the man was dead and he called for back up. His statement's been taken and he's been cleared. He's at home resting if you need to interview him."

"I don't think that's necessary right now, although we might later if something doesn't check out." Gideon warned.

"By all means, we want this solved as much as you do. This is one of the more up-standing neighborhoods in the area. The fact that something like this could happen here is disturbing to many." The officer shook his head as he looked at the blood spatter.

"Well that's what we intend to do, find out who is doing this and why. Some of our agents are looking through the photos and evidence from the crime scene as we speak. We just wanted to see it for ourselves." Hotchner said.

"Yeah, well not much here. We had to clean up for the morning commute. The only other thing I know is the parents and family of Mr. Jacobs is due to arrive this afternoon. I can't wait until I have to deal with that. It's the hardest part, consoling the families." Geary said sadly.

"You won't have to. We are officially in charge now, and other than keeping an eye out and helping the locals cope, there isn't much else you can do. We'll have our agents talk with and interview the families."

"Fair enough." Geary nodded, in no mood to argue. "Thanks for your time, we'll keep in touch." Gideon said as they all shook hands and the agents jumped back into their SUV, headed back for Quantico.

"That wasn't too helpful." Hotch commented as he started the engine. "Not necessarily." said Reid who had been quiet until now. "Why, did you find something?" Gideon turned to him.

"Nothing physical, but by listening to the conversation I was able to deduce a few things that could prove helpful."

"Such as?" Hotchner asked, glancing back at Reid.

"Such as our un-sub picked a heavily traveled, well-off neighborhood to do his killing. The murder took place at night, but in busy area where you would expect someone to maybe hear or see something. Further, he picks a place where the people live well and they feel safe and comfortable; there is little or no crime in the area. By choosing that neighborhood, not only does he kill someone many people saw daily, but now he has them scared and worried. They no longer feel safe and maybe someone saw something and they just aren't saying so."

"It's possible. We should have someone interview each of the neighbors more thoroughly." Hotch said as he glanced at Gideon.

Gideon nodded in response. "That's a job for the local police; we should re-group and set a profile for our un-sub." He said staring out his window as the beautiful neighborhood homes flashed by.

Morgan, Elle, and J.J. continued with the tedious work of looking at all of the photos taken from the different crime scenes. They were all different and there were few similarities to note. The murders took place at different times, generally at night but in different locations. One in a house, another in an apartment, someone else was found in their car. The only common denominator was that all of these people were young, successful, and had ultimately been stabbed to death.

Also, the crime scenes were very clean as the un-sub left little to no evidence behind. No prints, no DNA, no nothing other than the body of the victim. This un-sub was obviously pretty smart and he knew what he was doing. There weren't many signs of a struggle either, likely meaning that the victims knew their attacker or were caught by surprise.

To back up the theory that the victims may have known their attacker, Morgan had Garcia run the victims names through her database, but she couldn't find anything that connected them; all of the victims had different backgrounds and histories. Just as they thought they couldn't stare at the gruesome photos anymore, J.J.'s cell phone rang and she abruptly left to answer it.

"This is terrible, the only connection that we can establish is that this guy has some sort of fetish with stabbing people and making them suffer." Morgan said frustrated.

"I know, these pictures are so horrible, I feel sick just looking at them." Elle said disgusted as she placed the photo she had been holding on the table.

"The only other connection is that all of these people were young and successful, so it could be out of jealousy or vengeance."

"It could, but we basically have nothing else to go on unless Hotch and the others found something." Morgan said rubbing his head. Just as he said this, the three men who had visited the crime scene walked in. "Hey guys, find much?" Morgan asked.

"Nothing physical, but we may have a better psychological profile of our un-sub. We should meet in the conference room to establish parameters. Where's J.J.?" Hotch asked as they headed for the conference room.

"She had a call she had to take; I don't know who it was." Elle said as they walked down the hall. Just as they reached the main bull pen area, they bumped into J.J. and she didn't look happy.

"There's been another murder." She announced solemnly. "What? Where?" asked Elle. "About five miles south of here. A twenty-six year old marketing consultant named Andrew Wynum was found murdered in his apartment. Neighbors complained about a lot of noise coming from his room and when the tenant checked it out, Wynum was dead on the floor."

"What was the noise the neighbors complained about?" Reid asked.

"I don't know, I just told you all I know. The police are still on the scene and I told them not to move the body until we had a look." J.J. said.

"Good thinking. We'll leave as soon as we're done establishing a profile of our killer." Gideon said calmly.

"Alright, let's go over what we know." Hotchner said to the rest of the team as they took their seats at the conference table. "We now have what we believe is an established pattern of what he looks for in a person before he kills. He looks for people between 25 and 30, from well-off close together families, based on the victims thus far and the neighborhoods in which they live."

"He's targeting the upper class then?" Elle asked.

"Not really. More like people who live in close, well structured living areas; people who are seen daily when you leave for work. Further, all of the victims are from close-knit families and don't have any criminal records to speak of. All things said he seems to enjoy tearing families apart and causing them anguish."

"Yeah after all if a family doesn't have any serious problems, what better way than to split them up through a tragic family accident." Morgan stated.

"That may suggest that the unsub had his own family tragedy either growing up or maybe even recently that triggered him to start killing." Reid analyzed.

"Either way, this suspect has killed five people and who knows how long until number six turns up. We have to get going on this case. Elle and Morgan, you will go and interview the family of Ryan Jacobs. Try to find out as much about him as you can, especially the days leading up to the murder. Maybe we can find something there that will help us. Reid, I want you to go through all of our records on the possible suspects with Garcia, see if we can shorten the list and find someone who fits the bill until we find some evidence on this guy. J.J., you take the media as usual, see if you can cut off some of the bad publicity and see if there were any notable family tragedies recently that could cause a person to snap and want to menace society. Gideon and I will head to the most recent crime scene." Everyone nodded and got up from the conference table, all going their separate paths and eager to catch the un-sub before he struck again.


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N: **This chapter is short, as I thought it was needed to tie up loose ends and make the story more personable. It's a little slow, but I promise that the story will pick up after this chapter.

Morgan and Elle arrived at the house where Ryan Jacobs had lived, as they prepared themselves for the emotional task of interviewing the family. It was something that they both had done before, but never actually enjoyed doing. Although the whole process took a very emotional toll on the families, it also took its toll on the agents.

Elle and Morgan pulled into the paved driveway and stepped out of their SUV. From the outside, both the house and the yard appeared picture perfect; the type of yard any home owner would be proud of. The house wasn't large, but given its location and structure, it was still quite expensive.

As the agents approached the front door, they both tried to prepare for the grief and sadness that they would soon be entering. They both took a deep breath before Elle softly knocked on the wooden door. After a moment, a young woman opened the door and stared back at them sadly.

"Can I help you?" she asked quietly.

"Yes. I'm Agent Greenaway and this is Agent Morgan from the FBI's Behavior Analysis Unit. We're here to interview the family of Ryan Jacobs." She said, giving the woman with tear-streaked cheeks a soft, consoling look.

"Of course, this way please." The woman said as she opened the door and let the agents enter.

As they stepped inside, the agents noses were filled with the scent of home cooking and as they walked through the kitchen, they spotted the pile of dirty dishes by the sink. It made Elle feel sad inside as although they did this all the time, whenever they actually had to get to know the victims, it made the case seem more personal; it put a life with the picture.

The woman led them through the kitchen and into the living room, where two older people –obviously the parents- held and consoled each other on the couch.

"Mom, dad, these are agents Greenaway and Morgan from the FBI, they're here to talk to us about Ryan." The girl said, introducing them.

"Of course, I'm Robert and this is my wife Andrea." He said sadly as he sat up and shook their hands. Elle and Morgan noticed the chairs behind where they were standing and both took a seat.

"I'm sorry for your loss Mr. Jacobs."

"Thank you, I appreciate it. Have you found who did this to our son? Any leads?"

"Unfortunately, not really. Whoever did this to your son was very careful and has done this before. From what we know there have been at least four other murders similar to his." Morgan stated.

"That's why we are here, to find out about your son and who might want him dead." Elle said in a soft voice. "Do you know if he had any enemies?"

"No, none that I can think of. Our son was a very hard worker but at the same time, we made a point to make sure that he also cared about people. He was a very friendly, good person." Mr. Jacobs said.

"There was one time when he was young; he got into a fight with another boy about something petty. I told him that it was the last time I wanted to see him get into a fight unless it was something serious. He never fought again from what I know of." Mrs. Jacobs said, tears trickling from her eyes.

Elle nodded "Can you tell us anything about him in the days leading up to his death? Anything unusual, was he upset about something?"

"I really can't say for sure. The last time we talked to him was about a week ago, and he was preparing for a big presentation that he had to give at work. He was tired but also excited; he had put in a lot of work on that project."

"You don't know how it went I'm guessing?"

"No, I don't." Mr. Jacobs shook his head.

"I do." A young woman said as she entered the room.

"And who are you?" asked Morgan.

"I'm Sara Evans, Ryan's girlfriend." She said as she took a seat at the other end of the couch.

"Really? And when did you see or speak to Ryan last?" Morgan asked, more eager to find something helpful.

"Last night. We had an argument on the phone."

"What about?"

"About his job and where our relationship was going. I loved Ryan very much, but it seemed like we were spending less time together and he was putting all of his time into his job. Things weren't going great at work for him as I guess his bosses weren't very supportive in his ideas. He was under a lot of stress and we both said things that we didn't mean." She said, now beginning to cry.

"We got into a shouting match and I said I didn't want to see him anymore." She said now all-out sobbing.

"What time was that?" Elle asked encouragingly.

"I don't know eleven thirty or twelve. It was the last time I spoke to him. I would give anything to take back what I said and apologize. I just want him to be here." She said dropping her head as Mrs. Jacobs reached out and took her hand, showing her some support.

Elle and Morgan exchanged looks, both with the idea that there wasn't much else to learn here. Ryan Jacobs was a normal, up-standing guy who had a rough week and was at the wrong place at the wrong time. It was all tragic, especially how it affected the family and his girlfriend. They both stood up to leave.

"Thank you for your time Mr. and Mrs. Jacobs and Sara, we appreciate your help." They said, shaking hands.

"Thank you and agents promise me one thing; you'll find the monster that killed our son." Mr. Jacobs said, anger now welling up in his voice.

"We will, I promise." Elle smiled weakly before they turned and left the now dreary house.


	4. Chapter 4

Reid and Garcia were going about the long and tedious task of trying to narrow down the possible suspects for the case. They eliminated most of the unlikely suspects, such as the common thief or the rapists as they didn't seem to fit the profile. Also, to narrow the search they focused mainly within the state of Virginia, but also surrounding parts of Maryland and the D.C. area.

Once they had narrowed the list some –although the list was still quite substantial- they looked more closely into the suspects that were still remaining. They spent what seemed like hours in front of the screen and after a while, they were both feeling fatigued. That was why they were both very grateful when J.J. stopped by to check in on them and bring them lunch.

"Thanks, J.J. that's just what we needed." Reid smiled at her.

"No problem. I figured I'd just drop in and see how it's going before I left for the Sentinel downtown."

"It's tedious, but we've narrowed down the suspects into certain categories so that when he kills again, hopefully we will be able to eliminate a group."

"Sounds like fun." She shook her head sympathetically. "I've got to go though, so I'll see you later."

"Yeah, good luck with the press." Reid smiled at her again.

"Yeah, I can't wait." J.J. rolled her eyes as she left.

ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

Gideon and Hotchner arrived at the apartment complex where the most recent murder had taken place. The area was buzzing with activity between the local police, some members of the press and curious on-lookers wondering what all of the commotion was about.

The two agents approached the nearest officer and received directions as to what room the murder had occurred. Once they got the number, they went upstairs until they were on the correct floor and approached the room that was buzzing with activity.

"Hey, who are you?" someone asked as they entered the room.

"We're special agents Hotchner and Gideon from the BAU. We're here to investigate the crime scene."

"Oh of course, we've been waiting for you. I'm police captain Roger Stabler, I'm in charge here."

"Great, so what do we have?"

"What we have is a twenty-six year old male by the name of Andrew Wynum who was attacked and stabbed to death three times. His neighbors complained about a lot of noise coming from the apartment, and when the tenant checked it out, Wynum was dead."

"What kind of noise were they complaining about?" Gideon asked.

"A lot of banging around and some shouting. As you can see by the looks of this room, there was a struggle and Wynum put up a pretty good fight before he was killed." The officer commented.

"That's different from the other murders. All the other victims were caught by surprise." Hotchner said looking at Gideon.

"Perhaps our un-sub intended to catch the victim off guard, but he was found out somehow."

"Yeah, either way this scene should give us some evidence to work off of. Captain, did anyone see anybody suspicious lurking around the area?" asked Hotch.

"We already interviewed all of the residents, but no one seemed to notice anything unusual. One person described a tall, dark figure on the floor below, but it turned out to be a maintenance person; he's been checked and cleared."

"So, there was a struggle as the un-sub lost his element of surprise, yet no one saw him. He is obviously very good at getting around." Hotchner said.

"Can we see the body?" Gideon asked.

"Of course, this way." The officer said as he led them to the body that had been covered by a blanket.

The blanket was lifted and the agents stared at the body. There were cuts and bruises to go with the three stab wounds in the chest, but the body wasn't nearly as gruesome as the others. This killing had been done in a lot more of a rushed manner. Gideon noticed the man's hands and saw that his knuckles were scraped; he had managed to land a couple of punches.

"Have you searched for or taken any possible DNA samples?" he asked.

"Yes, it was one of the first things we did. We also were able to lift a few finger prints from the victim's wrist and throat as well."

"I'd like to have those if I could; we have a lab that can get that information processed immediately."

"Okay, but we would appreciate it if you could keep us in the loop because although you may be taking over the case, we are still planning to investigate." The officer said more sternly.

"Of course, we'll fax you the results as soon as they come in." Gideon said as the officer nodded in agreement and left to retrieve the evidence.

"What is it Hotchner?" Gideon asked as he noticed him staring at the body long and hard.

"Nothing, it's just that this case is beginning to become more and more familiar to me."

"In what way?" Gideon asked confused.

"That case we worked together a few years ago in Kansas, remember it?"

"Yeah, the one that got you into some hot water because you were accused of using excessive force. I can't remember the un-sub's name though."

"Allen Sutter, I'll never forget it. It just dawned on me looking at this body that this murder looks a lot like the ones from that case." Hotchner said solemnly.

"Of course, I don't know why I couldn't remember sooner." Gideon said amazed. "But Allen Sutter is dead, so this must be a copycat crime then."

"Not necessarily, Sutter had a younger brother. It's possible he could be taking up where his brother left off." Hotchner said shaking his head.

"You may have a point, I'll call Morgan and tell him to have Garcia look into it. We may just have our first break in the case." He said taking one last look at the victim on the floor.

ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

J.J. walked quickly down the sidewalk, deep in thought about what she was going to tell the papers when she got there. She didn't notice the man quickly approach her from behind, and didn't have time to respond as she was pulled into an alley way and chloroformed. A good Samaritan happened to see the whole thing and quickly followed them into the alley.

"Hey man, what do you think you're doing?" he said as he noticed the unconscious woman on the ground.

"Why don't you mind your own business and leave while you still can." The man standing over the woman said, not turning to face him.

"What's that supposed to mean!" the guy Samaritan said as he got closer and tried to see the shadowy man's face. The man in the hood swung around quickly and stabbed the other one right through the heart.

"I warned you." The man in the hood said as he pulled the knife out, stabbed him twice more, and dragged the body out of sight to the side of the alley.

He then finished tying up J.J. and tossed her into the trunk of the car he had waiting for them. He hopped in the driver's side and slowly made his way to the outer city limits.

**A/N:** Okay, I know J.J. was kidnapped in a different story, but I wrote this a while ago and I promise that it will all tie into the bigger picture. That's all for now, I'll be back with more chapters later.


	5. Chapter 5

**A/N:** Thanks for the reviews as I do read them. I'll try to add more Reid where I can, and we'll see what happens. Not sure when the next post will be, but please enjoy this one.

"Hey guys, Gideon back yet?" Morgan asked as he and Elle joined Reid and Garcia in the computer room.

"No not yet, and J.J. left a little while ago to go handle the papers. Did you guys learn anything new?" Reid asked.

"Not really, Ryan Jacobs was an upstanding guy who was just at the wrong place. His family and girlfriend are absolutely devastated though. It falls into line with what we were thinking; it's just very depressing what this monster did to that family." Elle said shaking her head.

"Yeah, well that's our job. To stop the bad guys and save the day." Garcia noted as she stared at her computer screen. Just then Morgan's cell phone rang.

"Morgan… Yeah? Okay. Really? Well I'm here with them now; we'll look into it while you head back. Okay, no problem Gideon." Morgan finished on the phone. "That was Gideon. He says that they may have found some DNA at the scene. It looks like our criminal may have gotten a little sloppy with his last killing."

"That's some good news." Elle said.

"It sure is. Gideon also wants us to check into a man named Allen Sutter, as well as any of his relatives; specifically a possible brother."

"Well that narrows down the list." Garcia said. "What made Gideon think it was this guy or a member of his family?"

"He wasn't too specific, but it sounds as if something they found dates back to one of the earlier cases that Gideon and Hotch worked on." Morgan answered.

"Okay, well we'll check into it and see what we come up with." Garcia said as she and Reid went back to work and Morgan and Elle left them alone.

ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

J.J. slowly stirred as she was confused and disoriented. The last thing she remembered was leaving the BAU to go to the Sentinel. Now she found herself blindfolded with her arms and legs tied to the chair she was sitting in. She told herself not to panic, but it was kind of hard not to as it was the first time she had been in a situation such as this.

Sure she knew of the dangers when she accepted the job she was now working, but never did she really think about what might actually happen to her. Still, she was brave and whatever happened, she was determined to be strong and try to get herself out of the predicament she now found herself in.

First came the obvious; find out who had kidnapped her, their motive and what they planned to do with her. She had to try to profile who had her as best as she could, to try to find weaknesses that she could expose and use to her advantage. Even so, there was little question that she was the one at a major disadvantage, and whoever had her likely knew what they were doing.

J.J.'s senses kicked into gear as she heard a door quietly close and could sense the presence of someone in the room with her.

"Hello, my dear. I see that you have awakened from your slumber. Do you feel better?" a dark, smooth voice said as it got closer to her.

"Who are you? What do you want?" J.J. said, figuring she'd get the usual questions out of the way.

"Who am I? Why I'm the one your team has been searching for. But you already had a feeling about that didn't you?" the voice said now inches from her face causing J.J. to shudder.

The thought that the serial killer they had been looking for had her, brought back to life the images of the other people whom he had killed. Suddenly what little confidence she had built up had evaporated and she was now very fearful for her life. After all, she was in the presence of a serial killer and one of the cardinal rules of the game was that if a serial killer had you, they had only one intent; to kill you. The only question was how long, how painful, and in what way they did it. J.J. now felt very uncomfortable, both with this realization and the cigarette breath of the man breathing on her.

"So you're going to kill me." She stated weakly.

"Eventually yes my dear. After all that is what I do." He said lightly touching a strand of her hair which caused her to jump.

"You're scared. That's to be expected. Especially since you know what to expect having seen my other victims. That was a luxury the others didn't have. I almost have to think that makes things even more scary; knowing what's going to happen to you." He said now taunting her.

"Please, don't kill me." J.J. pleaded.

"And why shouldn't I?" he asked as he lifted her chin.

"Because it'd be one less life you'd have on your conscious. Besides, maybe you could still get away. By taking me, that only increases the heat on you." She tried to reason.

"True. But you're off on both counts. First, I don't have much of a conscious and what little of one I do have is quite at peace. On your other point, maybe I took you for the exact reason you stated; to turn up the heat and get attention. Maybe the reason I took you was to get your friends attention and get them to come after me. Maybe I want revenge on one of them." He said as he thumbed her chin before dropping it.

"Who is it you want revenge on?" she asked as she heard him walk away for a minute.

"That, my dear Jennifer, is a private matter. At least for now. All you need to know is that I have a history with one of your friends." He said looking through the items he had confiscated from her, as she cringed from hearing him say her name for the first time.

"What did they do?" she continued.

"Again, that's private for now. Perhaps you'll find out my reason for everything later. But for now all you need to know is that I know one of your friends. Lucky for you in a way."

"In a way?" she asked, confused.

"Yes, I'm not going to kill you like the others, take it as you will; good or bad." He chuckled as J.J. squirmed. "However, I do have some special things planned just for you, pretty." He said into her ear.

ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

Gideon and Hotchner made it back to the BAU and immediately checked in with Reid and Garcia. "Tell me what you found." Gideon said as he stood over them.

"Well, working with what you told us and the evidence that was found, we certainly have things narrowed down. We'll have confirmation that it's who you think it is when the DNA comes back in an hour or so, but there are some definite possibilities. We looked into Allen Sutter and sure enough, he has a younger brother named Glen who has had his share of run-ins with the law. As of now, he is no where to be found and was last arrested around here a couple of years ago on a misdemeanor from what our records have." Garcia reported.

"If it's him, this could be very personal." Hotchner stated.

"True, and it would fit what we believe is the motivation of our killer." Gideon added.

"Yeah, just exactly what case are we talking about now?" Morgan said as he joined everyone else. Hotchner and Gideon exchanged weary glances and took deep breaths.

"It was a case we worked on some three or four years ago. We took down an unsub who had killed five people similar to the ones in this case. We pursued this man for over a month before we finally caught up with him. He wouldn't come peacefully though, and he was shot to death. Some thought excessive force was used and he shouldn't have been shot." Gideon explained.

"Why?" asked Elle.

"Because when he was searched, they found that the gun wasn't loaded. Our current suspect is the brother of that man who was shot dead. See, both brothers were heavily abused by their parents when they were younger. The brother who died was the oldest one and as a result, it's believed he was the one who cracked. There was always the thought that the other one could crack too, but he never did in the same way. Sure he was arrested for some crimes; drugs, theft, but never murder." Gideon told them.

"So the motivation for the first brother was the abuse he faced as a child from his parents. He was the oldest, so he took the brunt of the abuse." Reid analyzed "The other brother also endures some abuse, but he doesn't have the same emotional problems."

"At least not until his brother was shot dead." Elle commented.

"Yes, that was the point when he snapped. He heard his brother had been killed and he wanted revenge against society and the one who had done it. So he starts to kill in the same pattern as his brother, and hopes to get our attention so he can have his revenge on us at the same time." Reid concluded.

"That's about the size of it." Gideon nodded.

"My only question is who shot the brother. I know if I were a deranged man out for revenge, one of the first people I would kill is the person who killed my brother. Maybe we should be looking for that person and if he's not dead, then that could be a big lead into finding our killer." Morgan said.

"Well that's the thing, the man who shot the unsub's brother is still alive." Gideon stated.

"Who is it?" Garcia asked.

Hotchner cleared his throat and raised his hand slightly. "That would be me." Everyone exchanged looks.

"So that is why you think he could come after us in some way." Reid said.

"Yeah, one way or another he is trying to get us to come to him. We just have to try to stay a step a head of him. Figure out who his next victim is before he gets there. It's still possible that he could still go directly after Hotch. This might just be a ploy to bring us out into the open so he can get a clear shot."

"Gideon, you know I'm always on guard."

"Yes but still, for now you're staying put until we catch him. It's quite possible he knows where you live. If you have to, you'll sleep here tonight. We'll send a team to your house to pick up Haley and your son and put them in a protected apartment until this thing is over."

"Well, I guess I should hope we get a big break in the case if I want to go home huh?"

"Afraid so." Gideon said sympathetically.

Hotchner just shook his head disgusted. Haley wasn't going to like this one bit, he thought to himself. It was just what he didn't need right now, someone targeting him and his family possibly putting his marriage on the rocks even more. Oh well, what could he do? He'd just have another one of their 'chats' with her once the whole situation had cleared up.

"What did you guys find?" Gideon asked turning to Morgan and Elle.

"Not much, just a very sad, shattered family. They can't believe that something like this could happen. Jacobs was a good, upstanding man who just happened to be at the wrong place at the wrong time. It all fits the profile that we've built; successful person from a close family murdered by a jealous criminal." Elle said.

"Okay, good work. I think we now have everything set, we just have to find our un-sub and who he may target next. Where's J.J?" Gideon asked.

"Uh, last I knew she was going down to the Sentinel to try to handle some of the press. That was a while ago though." Reid said.

"She's probably still trying to tame the savage beast that is the press." Garcia remarked.

"Probably, Reid give her a call when you get to it. Let her know that we think we know who the unsub is so she doesn't have to fish around too much."

"No problem Gideon." Reid answered.

"Okay, everyone back to work; let's see if we can get ahead of our killer before he kills again." Gideon said as they all split and waited for the DNA conformation.


	6. Chapter 6

**A/N:** Thanks for the reviews, here's the next chapter!

J.J. sat in the chair and tried with no success to loosen the ropes around her wrists as she heard her captor go through her things. She knew that by stalling, he was trying to keep her on edge and unsure of what to expect. Naturally, it was working.

As she sat there, Glen –that's the name he had told her- played with her cell phone for a minute before getting an idea. "Smile, pretty." He said as he took a picture of her in her current state.

He added some text, found the number he was looking for, and got it ready to send. He decided to wait to send it until he was sure that they would know she was missing. Until they figured that out, he wouldn't send it. That way he could have as much time as possible with her.

He would know because naturally if they became worried, they would barrage her cell phone with calls. Just as he thought this, her phone rang with the name Reid appearing on the screen.

J.J. jumped at the sound of her phone, both happy and remorsed; happy that they were trying to reach her, remorsed that she couldn't answer it.

"Who's Reid?" Glen asked her.

"No one important." She lied.

"Don't lie to me missy, you're not good at it. Besides it's one of your team members, they obviously miss you already." He sneered as he set her phone down. "How touching."

J.J. took a deep breath and became nervous as she could sense him standing over her.

ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

Hotchner sat at his desk, spaced out as his mind was reliving that fateful day when he had killed Allen Sutter.

"_Hold it right there Mr. Sutter. We have you surrounded and you have no way out. Just come with us peacefully and no one gets hurt. It's over." Hotchner said as he stood in the bedroom doorway, gun pointed at the man. Gideon and a couple of agents were standing right behind him. _

"_Fat chance. I know my life is over, after all I killed five people. Either I spend life in jail or I fry and you know what, neither of those two options look very appealing right now." He said as he kept his gun pointed at the agents. _

"_Is that what you want then, to die?" Hotchner stared at him. _

"_You know what, you might just be right. I mean seriously, my life has been worthless since the day I was born. My parents never wanted me, they beat the shit out of me. People at school saw me beat up and wearing ratty clothes and what did they do? They laughed at me or ignored me. Well guess what, they aren't laughing now are they?"_

"_C'mon Allen, it doesn't have to be this way." Gideon said coaxingly. _

"_Where do you get off calling me Allen Mr.?" _

"_Fine, I'm sorry. Please just put the gun down and come peacefully. We only want to end this and help you." _

"_You want to help me! You want to help me. Well forget you Mr. If people wanted to help me, they wouldn't have just stood around and done nothing when they saw my bruised face. They would have done something. But did they? No, they ignored it. So you know what I said, forget them too. Now they know how it feels to have an unhappy family." _

"_Is that what this is, punishment?" asked Hotchner. _

"_If that's what you want to call it, fine. But the fact is no one paid me any attention until I started this. Now I have the attention of the world and you know what? It feels pretty good. And I'm not going to just lie down like some wimp and stand down. I'm not going to spend my life in jail and have the crap beaten out of me. No. I'm going down in a way to be remembered." He said angrily as he lifted his gun at Hotchner and prepared to pull the trigger._

_Hotchner responded instantly without a second thought. He fired three shots; one in the arm and two in the chest. _

_A stunned look filled Allen's features as he fell backwards and crashed onto the floor. The agents went over and checked him. _

"_He's dead." One of them said as Hotchner just stood there and stared. He watched as the unsub's gun was retrieved and opened. _

"_It's empty." One of the officers said, the words ringing in his ears as Gideon placed a supportful arm on his shoulder._

"Hotch, are you okay?" Gideon asked as he entered the room and snapped Hotchner out of his dream.

"What? Yeah, I'm fine." He sighed. "I was just reliving that day in Kansas."

"Hotch, you can't keep blaming yourself for what happened that day. He was angry and dangerous. He lifted his gun and aimed right at us, how were you supposed to know that it wasn't loaded?" Gideon said as he took a seat across from his friend.

"I know, it's just that it was the first time I had ever actually killed anyone. Sure, I've killed people since then, but it was the first time I really questioned myself about the job I do. I enjoy putting the bad guys away, I really do, but at what cost? If this latest unsub really is targeting me and my family, is this job really worth it? Is it really worth spending all those hours away from home, only to constantly put myself and them in possible danger. Is it really all worth it Gideon?"

Gideon sighed. "Hotch, that's a question only you can really answer. You're a damn good agent and a hard worker. You're one of the best, most promising agents that the FBI has and you're on track to greatness. But at the end of the day, you're the only one who knows if it's all worth it; worth the sacrifice both for you and for Haley."

"I just feel like we see each other less and less and that with every case like this one, I'm one step closer to losing not only my marriage, but most everything I love. Everything that I like to do outside of work that keeps me going when things get tough. I just don't know if I'm being fair to myself or to them. They've sacrificed so much and to put them in danger like this, I just don't know if I really want this."

"You're just tired and under a lot of stress right now Hotch. You just need some time to talk with Haley and figure things out. Take a vacation when this is over, clear your mind. Then, come back and see how you feel. If you feel the same way, then maybe it's time to move on and do something else." Gideon said in a coaxing manner.

Hotchner took a deep breath and sighed, staring at the picture of his beautiful wife that sat towards the center of his desk. Finally he lifted his head and turned to Gideon again.

"Maybe you're right, maybe I just need time to think and rest. I know Haley's always wanted to go to Tobago, maybe I can take some time off and set something up."

"There you go, just spend a week or two together to gather your thoughts and reconnect; everyone needs to do that at some point." Gideon smiled.

"Thanks Gideon, I appreciate the support. I guess I just lost it for a minute, with the stress and all. I really do love this job, I just hate when the unsubs target me." Hotch chuckled in an attempt to cheer himself up.

"I think we all hate it when we're the target." Gideon smiled as they both stood up.

"Let's go catch us a killer so you can go home." Gideon said, putting an encouraging hand on Hotch's shoulder.

oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

Spencer Reid hung up his phone and looked at it quizzically in his hand from where he stood. "That's weird." he said.

"What is it?" Garcia asked as she turned to briefly look at him.

"J.J. didn't answer her phone; I only got the answering service."

"She's probably still shooing away some reporter or answering some question they have. They never run out of questions."

"Maybe, but she left quite a while ago. It shouldn't take that long."

Just as Reid was saying this, in another room the phone rang and Gideon answered. "Gideon."

"Agent Gideon, so nice to hear your voice." a peeved voice said.

"Mr. Shelby, to what do I owe this pleasure." Gideon responded sarcastically.

"Oh, I don't know. We here at the Sentinel were just wondering how long you guys were going to string us along and leave us in the dark. You see, unlike you guys, we do have better things to do then wait around all day for some one to show up." Shelby said, his voice becoming louder and angrier as he went on.

"I'm sorry Mr. Shelby, I'm not sure what you're getting at." Gideon stated, genuinely perplexed.

"Where's J.J. Gideon? She said she'd be here a couple hours ago."

Gideon's heart plunged and he became worried. "You mean she never showed up?"

"Nope, and quite frankly we're done waiting around for her."

"Well, Mr. Shelby I'm very sorry but there must have been some miscommunication, because she was never supposed to meet with you. You have my word I'll look into this and give you the first scoop we get. Goodbye." Gideon said as he hung up the phone and anxiously went to find Reid.

"Reid!" he bellowed as he entered the room and the others gathered.

"What is it Gideon?" Reid asked a little surprised to see Gideon shaken.

"Have you called J.J. yet?" he asked earnestly.

"Yeah and she didn't answer, why?"

"The Sentinel just called and said that she never showed up." Everyone exchanged worried looks.

"Here, try again." Hotchner said as he called her.

He frowned as the phone rang until it got to her machine. "Nothing."

"Damn!" Gideon shouted.

"You don't think?" Morgan asked.

"That's exactly what I think. I think our unsub has J.J." groaned Gideon.

oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

"Bingo." Glen smiled as he saw Hotchner's number on J.J.'s screen.

He hit the send button and out went the picture. Satisfied, he turned off her phone and tossed it into the pile of her belongings.

oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

Less then a minute after Hotchner had called, his phone vibrated. He picked it up immediately and became excited when he saw that it was a message from J.J.

"Hey, J.J just sent me a message." He told everyone as they gathered around and he opened it.

They all gasped at what they saw. There was J.J. bound and blindfolded sitting in a chair. Underneath the picture were the words_: I have something of yours Hotchner. Come and get her while she's still alive._

The team exchanged sick, worried looks. One of there own was now in the hands of a serial killer bent on revenge.

**A/N: **Okay, not much of a cliffhanger, but I'll try to get the next chapter up soon.


	7. Chapter 7

**A/N: **As promised, here is the next chapter. Thanks for the reviews.

Hotchner finished what he was saying into his cell phone and quietly joined the rest of the team which had already gathered in the conference room.

"There are police and agents scanning every inch of ground between here and the Sentinel, and interviewing any possible witnesses. So far they haven't found anything." He said bowing his head slightly.

"What do we do now?" Elle asked, distraught that J.J. was likely in grave danger.

"We keep working on the case and hope we find something that will lead us to her." Gideon said solemnly. "If we can catch a break, then maybe we can get to her before it is too late."

"I have to wonder if the unsub is really going to kill her though, at least not right away." Reid spoke up.

"What makes you say that?" Morgan asked, looking at his teammate.

"Well to start, all of the murders happened right away from what we know, the attacks were direct and immediate; the victims weren't held captive. Second, he added text with the picture he sent. The text was not only aimed at Hotchner, but it was done so in a taunting manner."

"In other words, he is trying to use her to lure me to him." Hotch said, staring at the table.

"Exactly. He is getting personal to ensure that we pursue him and he is taunting us, in hopes that we will make a mistake. He likely knows that we have some idea of who he is, and that we are not going to make Hotch an easy target, so he takes J.J. and taunts us with her."

"Reid could be on to something." Morgan said raising an eyebrow and scanning the group around the conference table.

"True, but this man is a proven serial killer, and once he gets what he wants, he won't need J.J." Elle said.

"That's why we have to make sure we do just the opposite. We have to make sure we don't give him what he wants." Gideon said staring at Hotchner.

ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

"Well, Jennifer your friends now know you're missing. How lucky for you." He taunted as he twirled a strand of her hair as she squirmed.

"Please let me go, I can't identify you because I haven't even seen you." She tried in vain to convince him.

"You'd like that, wouldn't you." He said stroking her cheek as she jumped again.

"Wow, you're very jumpy. Don't worry though; I'll break you out of that bad habit eventually." He chuckled as J.J. became even more nervous as she felt a finger trace her jaw-line.

"You smell good." He said after sniffing her.

"You are a very beautiful young woman. One of the reasons why I chose you. I could have had anyone on your team, but I saw you and I knew right away you were the one." He said as his finger went down her throat.

"It must be scary blindfolded, not being able to see your surroundings; where you are, who you're with, and responding solely on your sense of touch." He teased as his finger softly traveled along her collarbone and under the collar of her blouse.

"Such soft skin." He whispered into her ear as she instinctively tried to move away.

"What's wrong, that pretty little ear doesn't like the sound of my voice?" he said forcing his mouth to her ear.

J.J. closed her eyes behind the blindfold as she felt him breath into her ear. She tried to turn away as she felt his tongue come out, but he forced her head to stay in place. His tongue trailed lightly along the edge of her ear.

"Such a pretty ear." He continued to taunt as his mouth wrapped around her ear lobe. He tugged down on it with his lips, hard enough to make J.J. cry out.

His tongue trailed down the side of her neck and around to her cheek. J.J. again tried to turn away, but he forced her to face him.

She scrunched up her nose as she got a whiff of his bad breath straight on. He kissed her nose, and then trailed his mouth down to her mouth, giving it a very soft kiss. When she tried to turn away and make him stop, he became rough.

"Don't like it soft huh? Well how about rough?" He said as he gave her a long, crushing kiss on the mouth as J.J. tried to make him stop.

He stopped to take a breath, and then went at her harder, forcing his tongue into her mouth. J.J. sat there and could do nothing as his tongue ran along her teeth and teased her tongue. A string of saliva dribbled onto her chin when he finally pulled away as she gasped for air.

"Ah… that was very pleasurable." He chuckled as he looked at her.

"You know, I never really got to see your eyes. I bet you have very beautiful eyes. Would you like me to take off the blindfold?"

J.J. nodded her head.

"Okay, I think it's time you get to see who I am." He said as he reached around and took off the blindfold.

J.J. scrunched her eyes as it took a minute for them to adjust, although the room was pretty dark. When she did open them, she jumped back at the site of her captor right in front of her. He was about six feet and strong, with dark hair and what scared her most; dark, lusting eyes.

"I was right, you do have beautiful eyes." He smiled as he put a hand on her cheek.

"Where are we?" she asked as she tried to look around the room.

"In a room, that's as specific as I'll get." He smiled.

"So beautiful, and yet the fear is clearly in your eyes." He remarked as his hand pushed down on her upper cheek, forcing her eye wide open. He stared into her baby blues intensely for a moment before removing his hand.

"Is this what you are going to do, keep taunting me?"

"Well its working isn't it? You're becoming more and more scared and agitated. What little confidence you had is gone, and I can read your eyes like a book." He grinned as J.J. could only glare at him.

"Fine, you really want to know what I'm going to do to you? I'll tell you." He sighed as he went to the ear that he had bit earlier. He pulled on her hair harshly and forced her head back.

"I'm going to slowly harass and taunt you until you break and no longer jump when I touch you. You're a very beautiful woman Jennifer, and being a serial killer can be such a lonely profession." He said while rubbing her thigh suggestively with his free hand.

"I have to say I'm drawn to you, and I would like nothing better than to _really_ get to know you. Unfortunately, once you've served your purpose, you'll have to perish as the others did." He smiled when he saw her eyes grow wide and she began to struggle against her restraints.

He laughed as he came around to face J.J. as her eyes began to tear in fear. He grinned evilly as his hands trailed down the front of her, undoing the top done up button on her blouse.

"You are all mine Jennifer. I control everything and all you can do is watch and react." He said as he forced another kiss on her lips. When he was satisfied, he stood up.

"Well, that was fun. Unfortunately I have some business to attend to, but I'll be back in a while. Think about what I said." He looked back and smiled before closing the door behind him.

J.J. took a deep breath and for the first time, the tears came. She sat there and prayed as she cried, hoping her team would get there before Glen had a chance to do what he promised.

ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

"The police found something." Hotchner said as he reentered the conference room which had now been turned into a type of living space for the team over the last couple of hours.

"What?" Reid asked nervously.

"A man named Tom Guise was found stabbed three times in an alleyway about halfway between here and the Sentinel; he was 34."

"How long ago was he murdered?" asked Morgan.

"The medical examiner at the scene said it took place only a couple of hours ago; right in the time frame that J.J. was taken."

"The only thing I have a problem with is the man's age, he was 34. It doesn't exactly go with our profile age-wise." Morgan stated.

"He must be collateral damage." Gideon said.

"Huh?" Elle asked.

"Yeah, the man was just an innocent by-stander. Maybe he saw J.J. being attacked, tried to help her and when he did, our un-sub killed him." Reid analyzed.

"If that's true, then there goes our eyewitness and a possible lead." Elle sighed frustrated, as the conference room phone rang and Gideon answered.

The team watched him closely as he spoke with the person on the other end of the line. His facial features dropped some and he rubbed his eyes with his hand as the person spoke.

"Thank you." he finally said as he hung up the phone. "There's been another murder." he announced to the team as they groaned.

"It's not?" Elle asked in mid-sentence.

"No, it's not J.J. but it was another person fitting the profile. There were witnesses this time though and we might just be able to catch him."

"That's great news." Morgan said.

"It is, but I have to wonder why he would kill someone while he has J.J." Gideon thought aloud.

"What are you saying?" asked Elle.

"The unsub is getting uncharacteristically sloppy in the last two killings. Also, the murder in the alley was done more like the first couple of murders. The other two more recent murders have been more sloppy and with more witnesses."

"You think there is more than one killer then?" Morgan asked.

"Could be, either that or our unsub is even more creative than we thought. The only good news in him working so quickly is that it adds to the probability that he will mess up somewhere and we'll catch a break." Gideon said just as Garcia burst into the room.

"Gideon, we got the DNA results back."

"And?"

"And… it's not who we thought it was. The DNA belongs to a Mr. Rupert Gray." Garcia said with a look of disappointment on her face.

"Well, at least we have a name." Morgan sighed, becoming increasingly frustrated.

"Yeah, let's go find him and hope we can get some answers." Gideon said as the team stood up and moved to leave.

Hotchner moved to join them when Gideon put out a hand to stop him.

"Stay here Hotch, the last thing we need you to do is to get into danger. You're still the target from what we know. This could just be another trap."

"But Gideon, I know I can help you guys."

"I know you can too, but the best thing for you to do right now is to stay here with Garcia. Either run through what we have right now and try to find a lead, or just get some rest; you look exhausted."

"You know I won't sleep." He half-glared at Gideon.

"Help Garcia then, this case is far from over and there are plenty of ways you can help." Gideon said as he made his way to leave, leaving behind a tired, frustrated Hotchner.

**A/N: **Hope you enjoyed, next one may take a bit longer. I have many ideas and the story has quite a ways to go still. Be back soon!


	8. Chapter 8

**A/N:** Sorry about the wait all, but it is summer and I ran into a small roadblock with this chapter. Still, I'm getting there and more chapters should come soon!

What had once been a warm sunny day was now turning into a darker, increasingly cooler evening. There was a small breeze and the air had a slight, detectable chill to it as the sun began to disappear into the horizon. A long day was about to turn into an even longer night.

The increasing darkness made for great coverage for the shadowy figure that was now creeping about the well-kept suburban town. The figure was cautious to not be spotted by any passersby who were returning home from work and school.

Before long, he had successfully made it to the house he was seeking. To his surprise however, the house was dark and unlively. He made his way slowly around the yard as he scanned the house, looking for the most appealing window to enter through. When the window was found, he applied his crowbar to it and with a harsh tug upwards, he was able to jar it open; splintering some of the wood sill in the process.

Slowly he entered, careful not make a sound or unnecessarily disturb anything. He cautiously made his way through the well-to-do house, but it became very apparent that the place was empty.

Further, its' occupants had apparently left in a hurry as many objects were strewn around and the kitchen looked as though someone had started to cook a meal but had quit in midst of doing so.

The man made his way to the living area and looked around; taking in the TV, appliances, coffee table, and furniture that filled the room. The mantle above the fireplace caught the man's eye, and he made his way over to it.

On the mantle were multiple pictures of the seemingly happy family together during different instances of their young lives. The man stared closely at each picture before taking a deep breath and turning away. Then in a sudden motion, he turned back around and whipped his crowbar along the length of the mantle, sending the pictures crashing to the floor and destroying the frames. He turned angrily away from the mess he had made and quickly exited out the window through which he had entered.

This had been an unexpected turn that changed his plans more than he would have liked. No matter, he could still make things work; it would just take a little more work than he had anticipated. Still, he had to admit that he was both angry and disappointed in the change of plans, but he knew there were other ways that he could have his fun and ultimately get what he wanted; he would have his way.

ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

The team arrived at the address they had received for where Rupert Gray lived, accompanied by a couple of the local police who were the first to respond to Gideon's call for back up. The team each wore their bulletproof vests and was prepared for confrontation as they approached the old, rundown apartment building that Gray was believed to live in.

They slowly walked up the dark staircase with guns drawn as they made their way to the room that Gray was staying in. Gideon waved Morgan over to cover the other side of the door as he knocked on it.

"Mr. Rupert Gray, this is the FBI. You are surrounded and we have a warrant for your arrest. Please slowly open the door and turn yourself in. Things will only become ugly if you do not comply." Gideon said loud enough for everyone to hear.

When no one answered, he tried one more time before motioning for Morgan to kick down the door. Morgan stepped back and gave the door one swift kick, forcing it open.

With the door now open, the agents cautiously entered the room and scanned the apartment for any signs of Gray. The apartment was very messy with trash and other junk scattered throughout the place. Someone certainly had been living here, but they obviously didn't know the meaning of the word clean.

The agents searched all of the rooms carefully, but it quickly became apparent that Gray was not there. After the whole apartment had been cleared, the agents searched the apartment more thoroughly for anything suspicious.

It was a long, tedious task as there were piles of junk just about everywhere and the entire place stunk of garbage, booze and cigarettes. Finally, Elle was the first to find something.

"Guys, in here." She called to them from the bedroom.

The agents followed the sound of her voice and found her in the corner of the bedroom by a desk. She had turned on the old, dusty lamp that weakly illuminated the surrounding area just enough to see the contents on top of the desk.

The others gathered around to see what had grabbed her attention. There sitting on the desk were stacks of newspaper clippings, papers, and photos of a number of people.

"What do we have here?" Morgan asked as he leaned in to get a better look.

Reid and Gideon both picked up newspapers and scanned through them. Circled in red ink were the pictures and names of the people who were also present in the other pictures. Also circled were specific words that suddenly made the last couple of murders make all the more sense. They looked through the different people –four in all- and two of them stood out more than the others did; they were the last two murder victims.

"Well guys, it appears Mr. Gray here is getting revenge on some choice people." Morgan stated as Elle looked at him and shook her head in disgust.

ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

J.J. sat in the chair for what seemed like hours, just staring off into the mainly empty and otherwise uninteresting room she was being held captive in, waiting for Glen to return. She had already tried to loosen her binds again, but it was no use. She was glad that he was gone for so long, as it meant that she didn't have to deal with him.

Still, the long wait made her think about what he might do to her, who from her team he could be targeting, and how she could possibly escape. The problem was there were very few objects in this particular room which she could use to help her escape him, and all required for her to be untied; something that wasn't very likely to happen any time soon.

Before long, all of this contemplating made her realize that Glen was leaving her for so long on purpose, he wanted her to think. He was trying to play mental games with her now, and she had to do what she could to stay sharp. What she did know about him was that he was obviously clever, and he calculated his moves just so, so that his actions would have maximum effect.

J.J. realized that not only did she have to worry about what he might do to her physically, but also what he might do to her mentally. Overall, she had to be smart and not let her guard down.

She had to put all of the training that she had been given to good use. Because right now for her the only people in the world were her and Glen, and it was going to be a battle to see who could outlast who.

ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

As the team searched through the newspaper articles that were strewn across the desk, the story behind why Rupert Gray was on a run of rampage and revenge became more apparent.

Just five years prior to the current case, there were a group of five college buddies who were cracking up a scheme to 'get rich quick'. It was smart and well planned out as by using the internet, the group planned to run a scam that if worked correctly had the potential to be worth anywhere between thousands to possibly even millions of dollars worth of profit.

At first things ran smoothly, but between greed, technical involvement and rumors, the group was found out and eventually arrested. That is where the story really became dicey the team found out, as they continued to read through the articles.

Everyone was indicted, but the only person with a prior criminal record was Gray, who had a couple of minor offenses. With this being the case however, the group quickly turned against Gray and it became four against one.

The other members of the group made plea deals while claiming that not only was Gray the mastermind of the entire plan, but he also pressured and threatened them to keep going even as their doubts about whether what they were doing was right or wrong grew.

As a result of this and his prior offenses, Gray was sentenced to fifteen years in prison; of which he only served five because of good behavior. He had only just been released a couple of months ago.

As for the others in the group, everyone else did time as well, the longest of which was just one year. One member of the group even got off without doing time –Andrew Wynum- as he was a member of a politically powerful family in the area at the time.

The fact that all of Gray's friends had turned on him and forced him to spend what should have been five of the best years of his life in jail obviously helped him to snap. The team concluded that once Gray was released and struggled to get on with his life and find a decent job, he took out his pain and anger on those who had betrayed him. So far he had killed two of them, but there were still two remaining.

"Well, I'd say we now have a good idea of who Gray's next targets are and why he is doing this." Morgan stated as he rubbed his eyes as the others nodded in agreement.

"We should contact Garcia and have her find where these last two members of the group –Mike Lastings and Don Simmons- currently live and work so we can try to get to them before Gray does." Reid stated.

"I agree. I don't think these are separate cases though; I think they are connected in a way that we have yet to find. I think we should have Garcia check if there are any connections between Gray and Sutter. I still think they could know each other in some way. I find it hard to believe that these are separate cases or that Sutter isn't involved at all. There is too much evidence on both ends to refute that." Gideon said.

"I'll give her a call then." Morgan said as he stepped out to make the call.

"So who has J.J. then?" Elle asked.

"Right now it would seem sensible that Sutter has J.J., as unfortunate as that may be. Gray seems like nothing more than a decoy who is being used to distract us and keep us busy while he gets his revenge on the people who crossed him." Reid said solemnly, his underlying worry for J.J. beginning to creep into his voice.

"I think Reid's right. Gray is a serial killer, but he is not the one who has J.J. or is threatening Hotchner." Gideon said as he studied the photos one more time.

Despite their worry for J.J., for the first time the team felt as though they were making progress and finally gaining ground on their un-sub. They all just hoped that it wouldn't be too late.


	9. Chapter 9

**A/N:** Sorry about the wait, here is the next chapter. I should warn though, this chapter is a bit darker, that's why the M-rating. From what I have planned, the story becomes a bit darker from here on.

The team remained at Gray's apartment for a while longer, waiting for information from Garcia. As they waited, they searched and combed over the apartment thoroughly to make sure that they hadn't missed anything.

They became restless when there was nothing more to accomplish, and were only waiting on Garcia. Waiting when people were known to be in danger, especially one of there own, made things all the more difficult. Finally, Morgan's cell rang and the team jumped up and got ready to move.

"Okay, what do you have for me sweet pea?" Morgan asked in a serious, but slightly playful tone as his phone was put on speaker.

"Well, I was able to dig up some information on Lastings and Simmons as you asked. Simmons lives about four miles from where you are currently located. He has a wife and two kids, and works for a company called Players about a mile from where he lives." Garcia reported.

"Good, we might still be able to catch him before he leaves work." Elle stated.

"What about Lastings?" Gideon asked.

Garcia sighed. "He was a little harder to find, as he resided in Indiana."

"Resided?" Reid spoke up, catching the past tense word.

"Yeah, he's dead. He was found murdered in his house about a month ago; three stab wounds to the chest." The collective heads of the team dropped and let out a sigh.

"Obviously he must have been the first victim." Reid stated.

"That's not good news. It means we're down to just one target left. We must get to Simmons before Gray does. If not, we may lose Gray for good." Gideon said solemnly.

"Anything on a possible Gray and Sutter connection yet Garcia?" Elle asked.

"Not yet hun, still working on that. I thought the information I just gave you was too urgent to wait. I'll get cracking on that next though." She said with determination.

"Okay, thanks Garcia, and good work." Morgan said as he hung up and the team quickly headed for their SUV.

Time was short if they hoped to reach Simmons before Gray got there. They were in a race against time.

ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

J.J. had let her guard down. She had no idea how long she had been sitting there in that chair, but it was now evening she could tell by what little light came into the room from the one window behind her.

Eventually she dozed off, succumbing to the tiring boredom and darkness of the room combined with the draining stress of worrying what was next. She never even heard him enter the room, or felt him softly undo the ropes around her ankles while leaving her arms tied behind her back.

She jumped awake to the feeling of being lifted from the chair, and for a brief moment her heart soared as she thought she was being rescued. But when she opened her eyes, she found herself in Glen's arms as he carried her to an adjacent room.

She immediately tried to fight him and get away, but her legs were so stiff that she still hadn't regained all of the strength or feeling in them. When J.J. turned and saw that he was carrying her to a bed, her heart plunged.

Before she could do anything, he laid her on the bed and got on top of her. He didn't say anything as he began to kiss her mouth and neck, his hands running up and down her body.

She tried to kick him off with her legs, but it was no use as he was too heavy and determined. He moved around and worked the side of her neck, kissing it hard and leaving saliva behind as J.J. tried to fight back tears.

"I told you, you're mine." He said coming back to face her and looking her over.

"Please, don't do this." She pleaded as she followed his eyes down to her blouse. She shuddered as his hands moved to the next done up button. He played with it between his fingers before slowly undoing it.

"I have to say, I do enjoy a girl who takes pride in her appearance and dresses professionally. There's just something about it that really turns me on." He smiled suggestively as his fingers played with the next button before undoing it too.

This happened for each of the buttons, as he opened her blouse at a tortuously slow pace that made her squirm both in nervousness and hateful anticipation of what was coming. He was playing mind games with her again.

Finally, after what seemed like forever, he had finished unbuttoning her blouse and he pushed it down her arms to her wrists. His hands went up her abdomen with applied pressure, up her center over her chest and to her face.

"I told you I'd make this good." He said as he cupped her face and forced her to look him in the eye. She could see the desire and anticipation in his eyes and there was no mistaking it; he was going to get what he wanted whether she liked it or not.

Glen moved down her some until he was face to face with her stomach. He moved in and placed light, teasing kisses across her soft skin, as a way of torturing her even more.

J.J. closed her eyes and when she opened them again, he was right in her face. He gave her a long, dominant kiss on the lips as his hands crawled over her skin. Glen could feel J.J. shaking nervously as he touched her, but this only encouraged him more as it told him he was having the desired effect on her.

As J.J. squirmed and whispered pleas for him to stop, Glen ever so slowly pulled the belt out of her pants and unbuttoned them. Just like the blouse before, he took them off very slowly until they were on the floor and she was only in her underwear.

"You are absolutely gorgeous. I'm going to enjoy this immensely." He said as he kissed her cheek and his hands continued to have their way with her body.

"You'll never get away with this. You're going to pay for your crimes sooner or later." J.J. said with what strength and confidence she had left.

"That may be true, but I must say, this makes it all worth it." He sneered as he groped her, causing J.J. to wince in pain.

Next came the bra, as he slowly slid the straps off of her shoulders, kissing them as the straps came down her arms. He wrapped his mouth around the end of her shoulder and J.J. closed her eyes and yelped as he bit down. He licked the area clean soon after as his hands felt for the clasp of her bra. J.J. cringed as she felt him unhook it.

It had become pure torture as he worked so slowly and yet with such purpose. He took great care in what he did, but when he did it, he did it rough and made it hurt. He was taunting her in his own way. He was playing with her mentally while doing the same physically. He was slowly breaking her just as he said he would.

After kissing and touching her some more, Glen positioned himself over J.J. and prepared to make his move.

"Please stop. Don't do anymore, I'm begging you." She pleaded.

"But this is the best part, Jennifer." He said running a hand through her hair.

"Now," he smiled evilly, "it's time to see just how tough you are." He said as his hands reached down for her underwear.

Ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

The team sped their way to the Players building that was located just a few miles from where Rupert Gray lived. They swerved through traffic, sirens blazing as they moved along.

Inside the car, the atmosphere was a lot different as the entire team was quiet and tense; all worried that they may not reach Donald Simmons in time. If that happened, they all knew they could quiet possibly be back at square one and their chances to apprehend Gray would be gone.

Spencer Reid leaned his head against the car window, as he quietly worried to himself as they flew through town. He watched as they passed houses, businesses, and the sizeable town park as they got closer to the Players building.

He was deep in thought, worrying greatly about where J.J. was and what could be happening to her right now. He cared for her greatly, even if they had agreed to just be 'friends', and he didn't think he could bear it if something horrible were to happen to her. Still, this worry was kept to himself and the rest of the team barely noticed as they too had their own worries and concerns about her and other things involving the case.

Finally, they made it to the building, pulling up to the front entrance and eagerly jumping out of the SUV. They dashed into the lobby as multiple workers continued to file out of the building to head home to their loving families. The team approached the security desk as the guard at watch eyed them warily.

"Can I help you?" he asked as he stood up, his hand cautiously on his holster.

"Yes, I'm Agent Jason Gideon and this is the rest of my team from the FBI'S Behavior Analysis Unit. We are looking for a man named Donald Simmons. We believe his life could be in great danger." Gideon said quickly while trying to catch his breath.

The guard eased his hand off of the holster and his face had a look of concern on it. "Yeah, I know Simmons. He's a nice man. Unfortunately, he's already left for the night." The team groaned.

"It was only a couple of minutes ago though, and I happened to talk to him. He said he was going to walk home tonight."

"Walk home?" Morgan asked incredulous.

"Yeah, the park is right between here and where he lives. Some nights he likes to walk home through the park, I guess it's a way of relaxing for him."

"The park? Are you sure?" Gideon asked more intently.

"Yeah, he said he was going through the park." The guard nodded.

"Great, thank you. Do me a favor will you? Call the local police and tell them to meet us in the park." Gideon said as he and the team turned and raced for the park, leaving their SUV behind.

The good news was they knew where Simmons was. But the bad news was he was in a spot where he could easily be ambushed and attacked unexpectedly. They had to hurry.

**A/N: **Hope you all enjoyed. I tried not to be too detailed, but I wanted to get the emotion and darkness of the situation across. Hopefully the next chapter won't take as long.


	10. Chapter 10

**A/N:** Sorry about the wait, I know it was long. Don't have much of an explanation other than writer's block and life happens. I am very grateful for all the comments and to everyone who reads (if anyone is still reading).

Rupert Gray was a rather large man; he was only 5 feet 10 inches tall, but well over 200 pounds. He was not in the best of shape by any stretch of the imagination. Much of this could be attributed to the downward spiral his life had taken since being sent to jail.

One of the last things he cared about these days was his health or appearance. He was focused on one thing; revenge. He wouldn't be satisfied until he achieved it and nothing else mattered. Once he had his revenge he would worry more about other, more trivial things. But for now revenge was his lone focus and his task was almost complete.

He had one more 'friend' to kill, who just happened to be in his sights as he now thought this. Donald Simmons, the happy, successful family man who had become such by making Rupert take the fall for their wrongs.

Now here they were alone in the park, Donald was in his own little world. He calmly walked through the dark park completely oblivious. Rupert gripped the knife in his hand more tightly; here was his chance to finish what he had started.

ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

The BAU team had run the short distance to the park and now stood at one of the main walk ways, both nervous and eager to save Simmons before it was too late.

"Okay… let's split up. Elle, you and Reid take the pathway to the right, and Morgan and I will take the path to the left. I don't need to warn you to be careful; this man is armed and dangerous." Gideon stated as the team nodded in response and split up as they ran into the park.

The park wasn't large, but it certainly wasn't small either as there was plenty of space to be covered and with that, plenty of places to hide. The park was lit along the main walkways by street lights, but there were still plenty of areas that remained in the dark, especially those off of the path.

Gideon and Morgan both carried flash lights as they quickly made their way down the path, both scanning the area and trying to cover as much ground as they could at the same time. Elle and Reid did the same on their path, but so far there was no luck. They were half-way through the park.

Rupert Gray had seen his opportunity and taken it. Donald Simmons had passed just close enough to him in a poorly lit area that the time to strike was perfect. Simmons didn't even know what hit him as out of no where a figure lunged at him from the bushes and tackled him.

He lay there stunned for a moment, trying to regain his bearings as his attacker hovered over him wielding a knife. It soon became apparent to Simmons that he was gravely in danger, he began to fight and struggle for his life. He wasn't going to go down easy; he had too much to live for.

He punched and clawed at the larger man above him until he finally knocked him over. Simmons immediately got up to run away, but was too slow as his attacker tackled him back down to the ground and landed a hard right to his face. Simmons yelled out for help as his attacker moved the knife towards his chest.

Gideon and Morgan were the first and closest to the cries for help and immediately headed for where the noise was coming from. They soon arrived at the scene to find one man on the ground and another on top of him; a knife just inches from the lower man's chest.

"Freeze! Rupert Gray FBI! Drop the gun!" Morgan shouted as both he and Gideon aimed their guns as Elle and Reid arrived from the other side.

The sound of police sirens were in the distance and coming closer as the scene played out. Gray ignored the warnings of the unexpected audience that had now joined them. He was going to kill Simmons and finish what he started, nothing would stop him. Gray pushed down harder on the knife and it was now less than an inch from Simmons chest, as he was slowly losing his strength.

"Drop it Gray, I'm warning you! It doesn't have to end like this." Gideon said as they all took a couple of steps closer as some of the local police began to arrive.

Gray continued to ignore them and it became apparent that they had no other choice. Gideon raised his gun, aimed it, and fired one shot…

ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

J.J. was now lying alone on the bed; fully clothed with her hands tied to the headboard above her head. Her body ached and she was both physically and emotionally drained. What he had done to her had been the worst experience of her life, and it took every ounce of will-power for her to not constantly relive it.

He had his way with her; violating her in a way which she had hoped would never happen. The man was pure evil. He did as he pleased and every time she had tried to retreat into her subconscious, he would smack her or do something to bring her back.

He had kept going; ignoring her pleas until he was completely satisfied. Then, once he was finished, he had forced her to get up and shower; refusing to give her clothes back until she had done so thoroughly.

J.J. had thought of the chance to escape since he had undone her binds, but that hope was quickly dashed when he stood in the doorway and watched, making sure that she washed and dried thoroughly before giving her clothes back.

Once she was fully dressed he had led her back to the bed, and J.J. began to shake in fear that he was going to do it all over again. He acted as though he would; laying her down and getting on top as J.J. cried again and fought him with every ounce of strength and will that she had left.

He forced her arms above her head, and that was when he tied them to the head board. After giving her a kiss, Sutter had smiled and got up to finally leave her alone. He did so, but not before he left with a parting comment that both angered and worried her.

"I enjoyed our time together very much Jennifer. Perhaps there will be time for more later. In any case, I must leave you for now, but with any luck, I should be back with a friend." He had grinned evilly before slowly closing the door behind him.

Once he was gone J.J. had let loose all of the pent up emotion that had built up inside of her during the ordeal. She tried desperately to undo her binds once she had calmed down, but all they did was painfully cut into her wrists.

With nothing more to do, J.J. laid her head back on the pillow and tried hard to keep her mind busy. She hoped that the team would find her soon. She knew they were looking for her and they were some of the best in the business. They would find her; they had to. She refused to give up hope and let Glen Sutter win.

oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

The bullet fired from Gideon's gun had pierced the right shoulder of Gray, causing him to drop the knife and clutch his shoulder instinctively. The knife had fallen harmlessly to the ground, just inches from Simmons. Morgan and some of the cops quickly rushed in to subdue and cuff Gray as Simmons was dragged away to safety.

Once Gray was subdued and Simmons safe, the entire team breathed a deep sigh of relief. They had saved Simmons and had Gray in custody. They were one step closer in ending this once and for all. Now it was time to get some answers…

ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

Garcia had just gotten off the phone with the team and while they were off to try and save the life of Donald Simmons, Aaron Hotchner did all he could to help Garcia. Still, although he meant well he was getting in her way more than anything else. He was bored out of his mind and he really just wanted for all of this to end. He wanted to be home in his warm, safe house holding his beautiful wife and their son in his arms.

Just as he was about to go for another coffee for both Garcia and himself, his phone rang. Hotchner fished the phone out of his pocket, and when he saw that it was J.J.'s number calling him, he got Garcia's attention.

"Garcia, it's J.J.'s phone again. The unsub is calling me." Garcia sat straight up and turned away from her computer to look at Hotch.

"Wait! Don't answer it! Let me trace the call so we can try to find where this bastard is calling from." She said as she quickly typed away at the keyboard. "Okay, go." She told him when she was ready. Hotchner pushed the button and received the call.

"Hello?" he said cautiously.

"Well… if it isn't the infamous Aaron Hotchner." The dark, deep voice said on the line.

"Who is this?" Hotchner asked.

"Oh, I think you know quite well who I am Aaron. Don't play dumb with me." The voice said with a bit more anger.

"Hold on, let me guess… did you have a brother?" Hotchner asked as he tried to stall some.

"Yes, I did. You're getting warmer."

"You wouldn't be Glen Sutter now would you?" Hotchner asked more seriously.

"Why yes, I am. Very good Hotchner, I always knew you were smart, a little quick with the trigger, but smart."

"Okay Glen, what is it you want exactly?"

"Well, to be honest, I would like nothing more than to kill you, but since that is proving to be a bit too difficult, I guess I'm going to have to settle for the next best thing."

"Which is what exactly?"

"Why, your wife and son of course; the two people you care most about. You see Aaron, I want you to suffer. I want you to suffer a lot, more than either my brother or I ever had to. You will pay big." Glen sneered over the phone. Garcia, who could hear the whole conversation, gave Hotchner a sympathetic look.

"Well Glen, I never wanted to kill your brother, but he gave me no choice; he pointed a gun at us. How was I supposed to know that it wasn't loaded?"

"I don't care if it was loaded or not, you killed him! And I have had to suffer with that for years now. Your turn to suffer and pay for your crimes has come Aaron Hotchner. There is no escaping it."

"Well if you think I won't put up a fight, you better guess again. You can threaten me all you want, but it won't do you any good."

"Shut up Hotchner! Don't act like your better than me, because your not. None of you are. You think you're smarter than me? Well how about this; I've been to your house Aaron, I've walked through your rooms and touched your things. I know Haley and your son aren't there however, I know exactly what hotel you are keeping them at though. You and your so called protective custody. Well guess what, they aren't safe and they're about to be mine. And I can promise you Aaron, that pretty wife of yours is going to suffer a lot more than I ever have."

"You son of a bitch!" Hotchner yelled into the phone, his blood was now to the boiling point.

"Oh, and one other thing Aaron, I greatly enjoyed the company of Agent Jareau, but she will die as well. She's served her purpose. Perhaps I'll gift wrap her body with your wife's in a nice package that will be sent to your house. What do you think?"

Hotchner was just about to respond when Garcia gasped and interrupted him. "Hotch, I found him. He's right outside the building, across the street!" she said in shock. Hotchner ran out of the room without thinking.

"Hotch wait! Don't go out there alone, let me send someone with you!" she pleaded. But it was too late, he was already gone. All she could do was call for security and hope that they got there in time.

**A/N: **Hope you enjoyed, with any luck I might be able to get the next chapter up this weekend. No guarantees. If I don't it might be a while until I update again. I'll try my best.


	11. Chapter 11

**A/N: Sorry about the wait guys, I realize it's hard to follow a story when the updates are far apart. I know how I want this story to go its just hard finding time to actually write it. Anyway, here is the next chapter.**

Hotchner ran through the BAU as fast as he could, nearly knocking over a secretary as he made his way to the nearest exit. It was a side exit that put him in a poorly lit section of the premises but also provided him with a bit of cover.

"You son of a bitch, you're going to rot in hell!" he yelled into his phone, trying to distract Sutter a bit while he gained his bearings and searched the area.

"That might be true Aaron, but if that's the case, then why not make it worth it, right?" Sutter sneered into the phone as Hotchner made his way to the front of the building.

Suddenly he spotted a car parked across the street near a street light; a man was sitting in the driver's seat and talking on his cell phone. It was Sutter!

"You're a sick man Mr. Sutter; too bad no one can help you. Just like your brother." Hotchner said as he slowly approached the car and reached for his gun with his free hand.

"Forget you Agent Hotchner! I'll kill every person you ever met! I'll leave you alive just so you can suffer with the fact that you are all alone in the world, and you had a hand in killing them all!"

"You know what your problem is Sutter? You talk too much." With that Hotchner lunged for the car, yanked the door open and drew his gun.

"Freeze Sutter!" he shouted as the man immediately dropped his phone in complete surprise. "Please, don't shoot me!" the man pleaded as he raised his hands. As the man's face came into the light, Hotchner realized his mistake.

"Behind you Aaron." Sutter taunted.

Just as Hotchner began to turn, a heavy object crashed into his skull, knocking him to the ground unconscious. Before the man in the car could react, Sutter turned the gun he held and fired, killing the man. It wasn't like the other murders, but he didn't care, he had what he wanted.

A commotion from the BAU building caused Sutter to turn and find agents with guns drawn running out of the building, scouring the area. As he lifted up Hotchner to put him in his newly acquired vehicle, he made eye contact with one of the agents. He was still a couple hundred feet away, but that didn't stop him from yelling for Sutter to stop what he was doing.

Sutter quickly shoved the unconscious Hotchner into the car and jumped into the driver's seat. The key was already in the ignition, allowing him to quickly speed away as the agents fired in vain at the car. Sutter smiled happily as he looked back in the rear view mirror. Revenge was about to be his.

Ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

Penelope Garcia had seen the whole thing. The minute after Hotch had dashed out of her office and she had called for security, she quickly gained access of the security cameras so she could see what was happening outside.

She quickly scanned through the multiple cameras and angles, until she stopped at one when she saw Hotchner enter the picture. She watched closely as he carefully walked away from the BAU building, becoming smaller and smaller in her screen until he was barely visible.

Using her tech-genius skills however, she was able to make the camera zoom in for a closer look. It was still a little blurry because Hotchner was now across the street, but she could still make out what was happening. She watched Hotch carefully approach a car parked under a street light and then in an instant, spring into action.

Then something happened. She watched Hotchner hesitate, and then flinch. Suddenly another person joined the frame, approaching Hotchner from behind at a quick pace.

"Hotch look out!" she yelled at her screen as the figure clubbed Hotchner over the head.

"Nooo!" she cried again as she watched the attacker kill whoever was in the car, then shove Hotchner inside and speed off.

Garcia sat there in stunned silence. She couldn't believe what she had just witnessed. Someone had been murdered and Hotchner had been kidnapped by their un-sub. This was a disaster! How could this happen? What could she possibly do? She thought feebly as she watched the chaos that ensued outside.

Some of the agents attended to the man who had been shot; though it had quickly become apparent that he was dead. Other agents hopped in vehicles to give chase while others returned to the building. Sirens were going off everywhere. Garcia didn't know what to do as she watched everything play out.

She felt defeated. Hotchner hadn't listened to her. Perhaps he had just been caught up in the moment; the anger he felt when the threat towards his family and J.J. were made. She had felt it too, but for him this was a lot more personal. His emotions had gotten the best of him. He had played right into the un-sub's hands. Now he was gone; just like J.J. They were down to five and they were almost out of time. She had to do something!

Typing quickly, she tried again to angle the cameras so she could try and get the license plate of the car the un-sub had driven off in. The camera she was currently using was no good, but after flipping through some of the others, she found what she was looking for.

She sat up straight, determined as she came closer to revealing the answer she so desired. Finally after some tinkering, she was able to find what she was looking for; she had the license plate! It wasn't much, but it was a start. She had to call Morgan!

But wait, she told herself. She quickly turned over to one of her other computers, the one that had been doing the criminal search for her. Bingo! The search had finally finished, she had what they had been after. Now it was time to call Morgan.

Ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

"This can't be good." Morgan remarked as the team's black SUV approached the BAU building.

There was police activity everywhere and the whole team had a bad feeling that something was wrong. As they were about to enter the building, Morgan's phone rang almost on queue.

"Garcia, what's going on?" he asked with some concern as he put her on speaker so the whole team could hear her.

"It's the un-sub, Sutter. He called Hotch. He threatened his family and when I traced the call he was right outside the building. Before I could do anything Hotch was gone; Sutter tricked him. He kidnapped Hotchner, killed a civilian and stole a car. It happened so fast, there was nothing I could do!" Garcia said with strong emotion in her voice.

The other members of the team exchanged concerned glances; they now had two agents missing. Gideon was pissed although he didn't show it. Why hadn't Hotch been more careful and listened to him? Why'd he do something as stupid as let himself get drawn out into the open where he was an easy target? Gideon didn't know all the facts, but he was still angry. This was just what they didn't need. The un-sub had what he wanted.

Spencer Reid also thought similarly when he heard the news, but he was worried for a different reason. He knew that the un-sub now having Hotch meant that he likely no longer needed J.J. She was expendable, which likely meant she was dead, or soon would be. They needed to get answers from Gray now. His thoughts were interrupted by Garcia's voice on the phone.

"I'm sorry." Garcia apologized.

"Don't blame yourself Garcia; it's not your fault." Gideon spoke up. "We'll be inside in a minute. We caught Gray."

"Really? That's great." She remarked. "The search I was running for you finally finished. Glen Sutter and Rupert Gray do know each other. They were cellmates during their time in prison. They were released at different times of course, but that's how they know each other."

"Great work Garcia." Morgan told her. "We can use that when we interrogate Gray." He said glancing back at Gideon.

"Yes, we sure can. Anything else Garcia?"

"Yeah, I was able to get the license plate off the car Sutter stole. I don't know how much help it is but-"

"Thanks Garcia, we'll call you back." Gideon said as Morgan pulled into the garage and parked the SUV. He was about to hop out when Gideon stopped him.

"Morgan, I want you and Elle to join the search for the stolen car. Get out on the roads and see if you can find it. Garcia should be able to at least tell you which way they were heading."

"That's not much to really go on Gideon." stated Elle.

"No it's not. But it's worth a shot. Reid and I will interrogate Gray. That way if he gives us a location, hopefully you two can get a head start. We need to get to Hotch and J.J. as soon as possible and our time is almost up." Gideon said solemnly.

Everyone nodded in agreement to the plan, and Reid and Gideon exited the SUV as Morgan and Elle drove off in search of the stolen car…

**A/N: Hope you enjoyed, next chapter is almost finished. Thanks for all the reviews.**


	12. Chapter 12

**A/N: Thanks for the reviews guys, here's the next chapter.**

Rupert Gray was escorted to the BAU's interrogation room and forced to take a seat at the table in the otherwise empty interrogation room. Both his wrists and ankles were cuffed making any possible escape highly unlikely.

Gideon and Reid stood on the other side of the glass, studying Gray as he sat there patiently. Without saying anything Gideon glanced at Reid before moving to go into the room.

Reid stayed to watch and study Gray's answers from a distance. He knew if anyone could get the answers out of someone, it was Gideon. He just hoped that it didn't take too long, and he really hoped that J.J. was still ok.

Ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

J.J. lied in bed for what seemed like an eternity. Under normal circumstances she would have dozed off, but she was too on edge to do that now. She had already made that mistake once, and she was determined to not let it happen again.

During her time laying there she had thought about her life and the path it had taken. Sure, she enjoyed her job very much, but never had she expected that it would lead to something to like this. She had been innocent, naïve even. She thought that she would always be safe, always be able to save people from the evil of the world without consequences. Well, she had thought wrong. That had been proven to her today.

Now she was in survival mode; she had to do whatever it took to survive this. She could worry about what she would do with her life after she got out of this mess. She had to think happy and convince herself that her team was on their way. They knew where she was, they had to. It was so long ago that she had been kidnapped and they were too good to not find her. It would happen, she knew it.

Just as she thought this, she heard the door to the adjacent room come flying open, and for a brief moment she thought that it just might be them. She listened closely for voices or any clue as to what was going on. She heard a dragging noise on the floor and someone grunting and straining.

Unfortunately, she knew exactly who it was, and it wasn't her team. Her hopes once again dashed, J.J. tried to remain positive, but there was an underlying sense of worry within her now that she knew that Glen had returned.

Ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

Glen struggled and strained as he dragged Aaron Hotchner into the main room. He dragged him to the chair where J.J. had once been, before handcuffing Hotchner's arms behind his back using his own handcuffs. He then took some rope and tied his ankles so that Hotchner was effectively tied in place.

Glen then returned to the door to close and lock it just as the FBI agent began to stir. Glen looked over at him and smirked, but left him alone for the time being. Instead he went through Hotchner's jacket that he had confiscated, cleaning out the pockets. He threw Hotchner's badge, wallet, gun and cell phone onto the table, joining the possessions he had confiscated from J.J. Glen again turned to look at Hotchner who was gaining consciousness, but was still pretty out of it.

"Hello Agent Hotchner." Sutter sneered. "Today is the day you pay for killing my brother." He said as he landed a hard right to Hotchner's stomach.

Hotchner wheezed and tried to catch his breath just before Sutter landed a punch to his face. A pool of blood formed at the corner of his mouth as Sutter landed a couple more punches; it was only the beginning.

Ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

Jason Gideon entered the interrogation room without a word, latching the door behind him carefully. He watched Rupert Gray the whole time, as Rupert stared down at the table in front of him, not acknowledging the agent's presence. Gideon took a seat in front of the un-sub and began to do what he had done many times before; too many in fact.

"Hello Mr. Gray, I'm Jason Gideon." He spoke softly, trying to coax Gray to look up and acknowledge him. Gray didn't move.

"I'd like to talk to you about what you've been up to the last couple of days." Gideon continued, but Gray still didn't move.

"We know about what happened approximately five years ago. You and some college buddies got into some trouble, they turned against you and made you take the fall for all of the crimes. So now that you're out, you decided to make them pay for what they've done to you. We understand that." Gideon said as Gray barely even blinked and continued to look down.

"I also understand that you're angry at them for what they did to you. I would be too. You were friends, you were all supposed to be in it together, but when the going got tough they broke down and put the blame on you. They stole what was supposed to be some of the best five years of your life. So you decided to make them pay by taking away everything they had gained in life."

"I understand all of that Mr. Gray. But what I don't understand Rupert –if I may call you that- is why you would allow someone like Glen Sutter persuade you into being his accomplice in the kidnapping and potential murder of two federal agents." Gray's head popped up at the mention of Sutter's name, and for the first time he made eye contact with Gideon.

"That's right, we know all about Glen Sutter. You were cell mates with him. He taught you how to kill those men didn't he? He told you that it was okay, that it was your right to get revenge after the way you were treated."

"You have no idea what I went through because of my 'friends'." Gray spoke for the first time.

"My life is completely gone because of them! I was never going to get hired by a top company, or have a chance to make much of my life. And it was all because of them! They made me take the blame and then went about becoming successful without giving a second thought of what would happen to me. They got what they deserved!" Gray finished angrily.

"Oh, I have no idea that's what you believe Rupert. But did you really think you would get away with it? And where would your life be once you were done with this? Where would you go from here, huh? Seems like a high price to pay, especially to be associated with someone like Sutter."

"It was my choice it's as simple as that. You caught me, congratulations. I'm as good as dead anyway."

"Are you?" Gideon questioned.

"What's that supposed to mean? Of course I am! I killed three people, and I openly admit to it. What more do you want me to say?! I know I'm going to fry for this."

Gideon sighed and decided to try a different approach. "What can you tell me about Glen Sutter?" he asked.

"I don't know." Gray replied simply.

"Sure you do. He was your cellmate for more than three years. He obviously taught you his killing style or, more specifically, his brother's killing style. It's pretty apparent you two became friends, he promised you something didn't he?" Gideon stared firmly at Gray and watched as he reacted in a way that told Gideon that he had hit the nail on the head.

Gray looked down at the table again.

"What did he promise you Rupert?"

Ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

Hotchner grunted as he tried to remain conscious after having just received another blow to the face. He didn't know how long the beating had been going on for, but it seemed like it had been more than an hour. Sutter would swear at him for killing his brother and tell him how much he was going to make him suffer because of it in between punches.

Hotchner took a couple more body blows before Sutter finally stepped away to catch his breath and admire his handy work. The FBI agent had at least one black eye, an open cut on his forehead, and blood dripping out of his mouth to go along with a split lip. That was not to mention the bruising he almost certainly had on his chest and stomach. Still, Glen wasn't nearly satisfied enough with that.

"You're going to feel more pain than you could ever imagine Aaron Hotchner." He sneered as he pulled out the knife he had used on his other victims.

"How does it feel to take another's life, huh Hotchner? Good, doesn't it? You enjoyed killing my brother didn't you?!" Sutter yelled as he walked up behind Hotchner and pulled his head back while holding the knife to his throat.

He lightly dragged it across his throat, just enough for him to feel it but not enough to break the skin. He dragged it farther down, ripping the top of Hotch's shirt in the process. Slowly, he pressed just hard enough to draw a little blood from his chest as Hotch did his best not to make any noise.

"Trying to act tough are we? You have nothing to prove to me Hotchner. I know your weakness." Sutter said as he moved away and came about to face him as Hotchner tried to avoid making eye contact.

"It's your family Hotchner; your friends and family, the people around you. You have an overwhelming sense to protect them at all cost."

"What do you know about that Sutter?" Hotchner glared at him.

Sutter chuckled in response.

"I have to admit, you have me there Hotchner. My life is just about worthless, that's not a secret. But how can you protect them once I kill you, huh Hotchner?" he walked over to the table and picked up Hotch's wallet. He quickly searched through it until he found the family picture that Hotchner kept in there.

"Such a beautiful wife you have Aaron. The possibilities are limitless with what I can do to her once you're gone. And your son… I can just imagine how much of a joy it would be to raise him in my own likeness."

"Shut up Sutter! I'll make sure you never get that chance! Even if it means killing you myself!" Hotch yelled, the anger once again building up inside of him.

"Really?" Sutter scoffed. "I would love to see you try, even now tied up as you are. You wouldn't stand a chance! What makes you think you can protect your family from me when you can't even protect the agents who work for you?!"

With that mention, it suddenly dawned on Hotchner again that JJ was being held captive by this man and he still hadn't seen her. He had been caught up in his rage at Sutter and the worry he had for his family. Now he was worried that Sutter had already killed JJ.

"What'd you do to her? Where is she?" Hotchner asked angrily.

"Who are you talking about Hotchner? I haven't the foggiest idea." Sutter mocked.

"Agent Jareau you son of a bitch! Where is she?!" Hotchner said as he tried to control his anger.

"Oh, Jennifer? That beautiful blond agent of yours? Why she's just in the other room. You can go see her if you want; she's still alive, for now." Sutter chuckled as he watched Hotchner's face turn another shade of red.

"Do you want to go see her?" Sutter asked and Hotchner nodded his head in the affirmative.

"Alright, here we go." Sutter said as he grabbed the back of the chair and dragged it towards the adjacent room with Hotchner still tied to it.

They reached the door and Sutter opened it; dragging Hotchner inside and closing the door behind them.

**A/N: Hope you guys enjoyed it. Not sure how soon I'll be able to update again, but hopefully it won't take too long.**


	13. Chapter 13

**A/N: Thanks for all the reviews, here's the next chapter.**

Spencer Reid was getting anxious as he watched Gideon interrogate Rupert Gray. It was taking longer than he had hoped, but he had a feeling that Gideon was going to get him to crack soon. He could see Rupert trying to think of a way to talk himself out of the situation he was in.

He also knew that Rupert could lawyer up at anytime, but for some suspicious reason, Spencer had a feeling he wouldn't. He couldn't explain why he knew this, but it was just something about Gray that told him he was glad that this was over and he wanted nothing more than to be left alone. He had only wanted to get revenge on his former friends, not get dragged into the rest of the mess he was now in as a result of being associated with Sutter.

The interrogation continued and Reid couldn't help but to look at the clock on the wall and watch as the time continued to tick by since first JJ and now Hotch had been kidnapped. Every time he looked up and more time had passed, the more anxious he became as the bad felling in the pit of his stomach felt worse and worse.

Gideon needed to hurry! He needed to make Gray give up Sutter already! This was going no where. He should just go in there and make Gray talk himself; by any means necessary. As long as there was a glimmer of hope that he could still save JJ and maybe Hotch. He had to go in there now!

Reid tried to control these thoughts that were rolling through his head but it was becoming more and more difficult. Finally, he made up his mind and started for the interrogation room door when Gideon got to the point and asked Gray a question that made him stop and wait for a response; this could be it.

Ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

"What did he promise you Rupert?" Gideon asked again, this time with more conviction in his voice.

Gray took a deep breath and thought of what to say before he responded.

"He promised to help me out."

"How?"

"He told me if I went about my business and kept the heat off him for a while, he'd take care of me."

"What exactly did he mean by 'taking care' of you?"

"He'd give me some money to start a new life with, a girl to start a family with, and he'd use one of his 'private' contacts to get me out of the country. I'd get to start over with a completely new life." Gray said with a hint of remorse in his voice.

Gideon was having some trouble believing what he was hearing.

"How much money are we talking?"

"He told me $500,000." Gray looked down.

"And where was he getting this girl from?"

"He didn't really say. He promised she'd be young, pretty and successful. Maybe a government agent just to piss you guys off." He smirked as Gideon glared at him.

Gideon tried to push on and repress the internal emotions that were boiling inside of him.

"What about the contact? Who was he, where was it being set up, and where were you going?"

"We didn't really get into it. He just told me if I did as he asked –killing people in the manner he had showed me- he'd take care of me and let me choose where I wanted to end up." Gray shrugged.

"And you believed him?"

"Yeah, he was my cell mate for a long time and he'd proven to be trustworthy before, why shouldn't I?" Rupert asked with some anger in his voice.

Gideon chuckled. "Oh Rupert, did he play you."

"What are you talking about?"

"He was never going to pay you, or give you a girl. And he certainly wasn't going to get you out of the country. Why would he? All he wanted you for was to take the fall for all of his crimes as well as your own. He didn't care what happened to you." Gideon said

"You're lying!" Rupert yelled, becoming angrier.

"Am I? Then tell me this, where would he get the money from, huh? We both know Glen Sutter doesn't have that type of money. And the people he kidnapped he did so to kill, not for ransom. I'm sure if he did kidnap a girl for you he only did so to make his ploy more believable. She'll turn up dead just as soon as he's done with his revenge. That or keep her for himself. Certainly not give her to you." Gideon said calmly as he watched the anger build in Gray's face.

"And as far as 'taking care' of you, I have a feeling he didn't mean to help you get out of the country if you made it through this without getting caught. He used you Rupert."

"No he didn't!"

"Yes Rupert, he did. He was a man in need who happened to run into another man with a similar need, and he was able to play off your needs in order to use you. He just wanted you to take the heat off him so he could do as he desired. Then, he wanted you to take the full blame while he escaped free and unscathed. That was his plan Rupert."

Gray bowed his head down as his mind swirled with anger and sadness. This agent was right he had been used by Sutter; just as his friends had used him. He was royally screwed with no way out. The only thing he could do now was try to get Sutter back, make sure that he took the blame and punishment for his own crimes.

Gideon paused momentarily while Gray tried to collect his thoughts. Then he spoke again.

"So Rupert, where is he? You can still make him pay while avoiding the full blame. Just tell me where Glen Sutter is."

Ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

Sutter pulled Hotch into the room and after closing the door behind them, spun him around so he could get a look at his fellow agent for the first time. Hotchner looked around the room –which he noted was a bedroom- and spotted JJ on the bed, her arms tied above her head to the headboard.

He was surprised by how well she appeared physically from where he sat. Her hair and clothes weren't as neat as when he had last seen her, and it appeared as though she might have a bruise forming on one of her cheeks, but all and all she looked better physically than he had expected.

When his eyes met hers however, he could tell that something was wrong. Her eyes had a sort of distant darkness to them, telling him that something more was wrong than what he could see. He just couldn't figure out what.

JJ meanwhile seemed surprised to see him, and deep down she couldn't figure out whether or not she was glad he was there. Not because she wanted him to be harmed, but because he was a familiar face who might just be able to help her get out of this situation. Still, there was little question that both of them were in danger.

"Damn, I forgot something. But don't worry, I'll be right back." Sutter grinned as he left the room momentarily, closing the door behind him and leaving the agents alone for the time being.

"JJ, are you alright?" Hotch asked as he couldn't keep his eyes from scanning her for any injuries.

JJ didn't say anything at first, just nodded.

"I'm fine." She finally said, her voice a little hoarse.

"He didn't hurt you?" Hotch questioned, knowing something was wrong.

"I'll live." She said simply. "What about you, are you okay?"

"Yeah I'm fine. He just took out some of his anger on me, that's all."

JJ nodded, noticing the cuts on his face and the blood near his mouth. She really did feel bad for him. She also knew that he had done something to piss Glen off, and that's why he was there. That's why this whole thing had started to begin with. That's why she had been…

Just then her thoughts were interrupted by Glen returning to the room, a gun and a cell phone in his hand. He placed them on the dresser directly across from the bed and a few feet from Hotchner. He turned and looked at Hotch before moving his eyes to JJ.

"Play time." He grinned as he moved towards the bed.

Ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

Morgan and Elle felt like they had been driving forever without having any luck. It was becoming increasingly frustrating that they didn't seem to be making any progress, but that didn't mean they were going to give up. Not a chance. Working with other agents and local police, they continued to search the streets for the car Garcia had told them of. Still they hadn't had much luck as they made their way down the side streets.

Inside the SUV all was quiet as neither Morgan nor Elle felt much like talking. They were too busy trying to stay alert and avoid thinking about what could be happening to their two missing agents. They were determined to do anything to help find them.

Morgan had thought about stopping to get some food because his stomach was barking at him, but he knew their time was likely limited and when this was over, he could eat all he felt like. So he continued driving, keeping his eyes focused on the road, scanning one side of the street as Elle searched the other. Suddenly they came to a dark, unlit side street and as they carefully made their way down it, they both spotted the car they were searching for.

Morgan called it in before him and Elle both slowly made their way out of the SUV and carefully approached the car, guns drawn. Morgan held up three fingers and slowly counted them off, signaling when they would each open the car door on their side of the car. They both moved in unison but it didn't matter. The car was empty with the exception of a small pool of blood, likely Hotchner's from being hit on the head Elle speculated.

Morgan slammed the door shut with enough force to shake the entire car, the frustration becoming almost too much to bear. Sutter had switched cars, just as Morgan had suspected he might. They'd been following a cold trail. It was up to Gideon to get Gray to tell them where Sutter was. And if he didn't know or didn't talk, Morgan was really unsure of where they would go from there.

What he did know was that it might just be up to Hotchner and JJ to save themselves. To Morgan however, this option was unacceptable. What was the point of doing this job if he couldn't even save his friends and co-workers when they were in trouble? There had to be another way; at least, he hoped there was.

**A/N: Hoped you guys enjoyed, trying to update as frequently as possible. There might be one more this weekend, but after that it'll probably be at least a week until I can update again.**


	14. Chapter 14

**A/N: Hey guys, sorry about the wait. Thanks for the reviews. Just as a reminder, this is a dark story so be prepared. Trying to turn things up a little if that's possible. Anyway, enjoy.**

JJ immediately began to struggle against her restraints as she watched Glen approach the bed with the same look in his eyes as he had during their earlier encounter. Hotchner also struggled and became enraged as he watched Sutter smile and lay down on the bed beside JJ.

"Leave her alone Sutter, I'm the one you want!" Hotchner said as Glen ignored him completely, putting his hand on JJ's stomach while moving in to give her a kiss.

He was acting as though they were the only two in the room. JJ whimpered into his mouth as his lips took control of her own, his hand stroking her stomach and gradually moving up to her chest.

"Leave her alone!" Hotch yelled as Sutter continued to kiss her, barely taking a break in between kisses.

JJ tried to squirm and make it stop as she found herself in what was now an all too familiar state of helplessness. Sutter took pleasure in this though, as he continued to dominate her lips while he opened a couple of buttons on her blouse, allowing his fingers to slip under her bra.

Tears streamed down JJ's cheeks as his fingers squeezed and fondled, causing her to cry out in his mouth when his fingers sharply pinched one of her nipples. His tongue played with hers and she tried to bite it, but he was too quick and smiled at her for her feeble attempt. To him it was all a game.

Hotchner meanwhile was doing anything he could to free himself and come to her rescue. He pulled and pulled on his wrists until blood began to trickle down his arms as the rope cut into his skin.

"I'm going to kill you myself Sutter!"

"He's so full of it, isn't he?" he smiled at JJ as he ran his fingers through her long blond hair, grabbing a handful and tangling it in between his fingers.

JJ glared at him before getting up the guts to spit square into his face. Sutter was taken a little aback by this, but simply wiped the spit off his face and chuckled.

"Oh Jennifer, after all the saliva we've shared today do you really think that would bother me?" he smiled as he rolled her on to her side to face him, the rope binding her arms painfully twisting and cutting into her wrists.

His lips found hers again as his hand ran over her ass, giving it a few hard squeezes as he continued to have his way with her. Hotchner was beside himself in fury as he watched Sutter manhandle JJ and could do nothing to stop it.

"Damn it Sutter!" Hotch swore as his hand moved from JJ's butt, over her hip and to the front of her waist.

His finger flicked the button on her pants open as JJ began to cry again and pleaded for him to stop. Slowly he reached his hand down her panties and stroked her a couple of times. He pulled his hand back out, knowing how angry it made Hotchner. JJ's breath caught in her throat and she choked back a gasp as he did this, doing everything she could to keep herself from satisfying him again.

Sutter just smiled at her before pulling her pants down, making a point to drag his fingers along the soft skin on her legs. Once he had her pants off, he gathered them up and tossed them in Hotchner's lap as his face turned beat red in anger.

"You're dead Sutter! Do you hear me! You're going to burn in hell for this!"

"Oh, I have no doubt of that Hotchner." He chuckled as he lightly dragged his fingers back up JJ's bare legs, teasing the inside of her thigh.

JJ began to kick at him, one of which caught him flush in the chest and sent him flying off the end of the bed and crashing to the floor. Sutter slowly picked himself up off the floor and smiled at her in response.

"Good kick baby. I like a girl with some fight it's such a turn on. It makes things more interesting." He said as he stripped down to his boxers.

He climbed back on the bed, this time making sure to keep weight on JJ's legs so she couldn't kick him again. He grabbed a handful of her beautiful hair and pulled on it hard, pinning the back of her head harshly into the bed, making her more immobile.

He kissed her lips and then went after her exposed neck. JJ tried to turn her head, but every movement made him pull on her hair that much harder. Finally, he stopped long enough to straddle her body and look back at Hotchner whose arms were now covered in his own blood.

"So before I do this Hotchner tell me something; who's better in bed your wife or Jennifer here?" he smirked.

"I don't know what you're talking about Sutter." Hotchner grumbled.

"Sure you do Hotchner; I'm just asking you for your opinion since I'm sure you have first-hand knowledge." Sutter continued.

"I don't you sick son of a bitch." Hotch responded. Sutter gave him a surprised look.

"Really? You've never had that experience with the lovely Jennifer here?" he said as his hand stroked her stomach and he looked to her for confirmation. She looked away, not wanting to make eye contact with him.

"Well I must say Hotchner, you've been missing out." He chuckled happily as his fingers trailed lower towards JJ's waist.

Her eyes became wide and caught Hotchner's, giving him a pleading look, begging him to do anything to make it stop. The look cut Hotch deep as his heart ached at what he knew he was about to witness. He had to do something.

"Damn it Sutter, that's enough! You wanted me and now you have me! Leave her alone, she's been through enough! Take it out on me!" he pleaded.

"What do you think I'm doing Hotchner? This is working perfectly. I get to have a great experience with Jennifer here, while letting you suffer in knowing that there is nothing you can do about it. I know that's your weakness Hotchner, the need to protect those around you. Well, now you're going to suffer and see that you aren't invincible. That you're only human like the rest of us, that you can't always save those you care about the most. You might as well save your breath Hotchner, you'll be dead soon enough anyway." He said as his hands reached for JJ's underwear, causing her to fight and struggle with all of her might.

"Stop!" Hotchner yelled. Sutter paused and stared at him.

"What is it now Hotchner? Because you know, you are really starting to kill the mood." He said as they exchanged stares, almost having a competition to see who could blink first. Sutter did, as an evil grin suddenly plastered itself on his face.

"I know what it is. You want a turn, don't you Hotchner? One last go around before I kill you? That's it isn't it?" he smiled at Hotchner who felt the pit of his stomach fill with hate for the evil man in front of him.

JJ also couldn't believe what Sutter was suggesting, and she did everything she could to avoid looking at either one of them.

"Come on Hotchner, answer me, time is wasting."

Hotchner's mind was racing. There was no way he could go through with this. She was a friend and a co-worker, what Sutter was suggesting was ludicrous. He couldn't do it. But at the same point if he didn't, Sutter most certainly would and he'd be made to watch. At least if it was him, Sutter would have to undo his binds and it may present itself as an opening at a chance to escape. Still, it just wasn't right on so many levels.

As Hotchner thought this he looked over at JJ and in a brief instant made eye contact with her. He tried to read her eyes and to him, it was almost as if they were asking him to say yes. For him to be the one; anything to get Sutter away from her. Sutter moved to continue what he was doing with JJ when he answered.

"Yes. Yes Sutter, I'll do it."

Sutter turned and smiled.

"Really? Well now, this should be immensely entertaining." He grinned as he took his hands off JJ and moved to undo Hotchner's binds.

ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

Rupert Gray took a deep breath and sighed.

"Okay, I'll tell you. But first, you have to promise to do everything you can to help me with my sentencing. I still want to live, and I want to be guaranteed my safety when I'm locked up. I'm pretty sure I'm a marked man." He said looking down at the table.

"I'll do whatever I can to help you Mr. Gray, but I can't make any promises." Gideon responded.

"That's not good enough! Do you want your agents back or not? How much do you value their lives? You're wasting what little time they may have left." Gray said as he glared at Gideon.

Gideon paused for a moment to consider what few options he had left. He knew that if he helped to get Gray a light sentence, it could result in the end of his career at the BAU from all of the political fall out that would no doubt follow. Still, Hotchner and JJ were more than just co-workers to him; they were almost like family. He was willing to do whatever it took to save their lives; even if it meant ending his career.

"Okay Rupert, you have my word. I will do everything I possibly can to help you." He said as he cringed at his own words.

"How can I trust that what you say is true?" Gray questioned.

"Because Rupert, the mark of a man is his word and I swear to you that I am a man of my word. So please Rupert, help me save my agents."

Gray stared at Gideon for a long while, reading his eyes to make sure that what he saw told him this federal agent truly was a man of his word.

"Between D.C. and Baltimore there is a town called Brooklyn, right near Curtis Bay. There are some older buildings and houses there. He has a place at 271 East Ave. I've been there once before. I don't know if that's where he's keeping your agents. But it's your best bet. That's all I know." Gray said.

Outside the interrogation room Spencer Reid heard what Gray said and immediately dialed Morgan. Morgan was still with Elle, pissed off and pacing around the alley way as they tried to figure out what to do next. He looked down at his phone when the ring interrupted his thoughts.

"It's Reid." He told Elle. "What've you got Reid?"

"Gray just gave us a possible location of where Sutter might be holding Hotch and JJ. 271 East Ave. in Brooklyn. Got it?"

"Yeah Reid, I've got it." Morgan said as he wrote down the address and showed it to Elle who nodded.

"Gideon and I will try to join you as soon as possible." Reid said, the emotion starting to make it into his voice.

"Okay, we'll find them." Morgan said with a new air of confidence.

Reid hung up his phone and watched as Gideon wrapped things up with Gray. A new sense of hope had filled him as he felt almost certain the address Gray had given them would lead them straight to Sutter.

"Hang on JJ, we're almost there." He mumbled to himself; willing her to still be alive, and eager for Gideon to come out of the interrogation room so they could go save their agents. He wanted to be there to see for himself what state they were in so there could be no doubt in his mind. He was convinced that they were still alive.

ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

Morgan and Elle hopped into the SUV and Morgan tore down the road, making his way towards the address they'd been given. He had called Garcia to get the fastest possible route to arrive at their location, and they were now flying down the city streets. Once again the interior of the SUV was almost completely silent as both agents tried to prepare themselves for what they might see once they arrived on scene.

"Do you think they're still alive?" Elle asked finally as she glanced over at him.

"Yes, I do." Morgan answered, trying to remain optimistic.

"They're both strong, federally trained agents. They know how to survive. Besides, Sutter wanted to make this drawn out; he wouldn't kill either of them right away. We still have time." He said as he looked over at Elle who nodded her head in agreement.

"I really hope you're right." She said as the SUV became silent again. Minutes passed and Morgan estimated they were just over a mile away from the address they'd been given.

"You might want to check your gun and get ready. We're almost there." he said to Elle.

She looked at him and smiled.

"All set and ready to kick some ass." She said as Morgan looked over and smiled back at her.

He turned his attention back to the road as they sped through another intersection. Suddenly, everything went black.

**A/N: Hope you liked. Probably going to be a couple of weeks until the next one, exams are coming up.**


	15. Chapter 15

**A/N: Hey guys. Alright, so I know this is sooner than expected but I had most of it finished when I posted the last chapter and I had some free time to finish up. With that said, this is by far the longest and arguably the darkest chapter. Very mature content so read with caution and please be sure to read the author's note at the end. Thanks and enjoy.**

Glen Sutter took his hands off JJ and pulled himself up off the bed, making his way towards Hotchner. JJ took a deep breath and pushed herself up the bed until her head was almost pressed against the headboard, relieving some of the strain that had been put on her arms.

She watched as Sutter made his way to the dresser and grabbed the gun he had left there before he approached Hotchner. JJ winced as she watched Sutter rear back and smack Hotch across the face with the gun. He then pressed it to his head as he slowly untied his restraints.

"Try to make a move, and I'll kill you Hotchner." he sneered.

Once he was free, Hotchner cautiously stood up to stretch his limbs and gather his thoughts. He still couldn't believe what he was about to do. Slowly he made his way towards the bed, keeping his eyes solely focused on JJ, trying to ignore his surroundings and the fact that she was tied there almost half-naked.

JJ also made eye contact with Hotch and felt almost mesmerized by the look he held to her. They both knew what was about to happen, and she could tell that he was doing all he could to try to make her feel more comfortable; as difficult as that was.

He was trying to reassure her with his eyes that he'd look out for her, that if it came down to it, he'd do all he could to avoid hurting her. Their fixation was soon interrupted when Sutter reached his arm out to stop Hotchner.

"Strip." He ordered simply.

Hotch looked back at JJ and hesitated, before slowly stripping down to his boxers. JJ tried not to stare at him, to give him the same respect she knew he was trying to give her. But she did have to admit, he was something to look at. Sutter gave Hotchner a soft push forward before changing his mind and pulling him back.

"Make this good Hotchner. And if either of you try something, I'll shoot you." He said before letting him go.

With some hesitation, Hotchner took the final couple of steps towards the bed and carefully laid down on JJ, re-establishing the eye contact between them. Sutter walked towards the chair Hotch had been in and sat down to watch, making sure to never turn his back on the two agents in front of him.

For a moment Hotchner stared at her, feeling very uncomfortable and not really knowing how to start. He was still in shock with the situation he now found himself in. Finally, JJ gave him a look with her eyes that told him they better do something before Sutter intervened.

Hotch snapped out of his daze and moved in to give her a very soft kiss on the lips. He followed this with another one before moving to the side of her neck as JJ closed her eyes.

"Follow my lead." He said to her in between kisses as he carefully traced his lips over the soft skin on her neck.

"I'm going to try to loosen your restraints so that when this is over, you might be able to escape and we can make a run at him." He continued to whisper in a tone she could barely hear.

JJ played along and let out a soft groan in response.

"Whatever happens JJ, know that I never meant for this to happen. I'm sorry. If it comes down to it, whatever you do, don't break eye contact with me. Keep your eyes squarely on mine; forget that he's even here." Hotch said.

JJ went to respond again, but found that it was more difficult this time as her emotions were beginning to catch up with her. It took all of her will power to push them back down and be the tough girl that she had trained herself to be. She couldn't believe that this was it. Either they were going to live or die. They're time was almost up and it had finally hit her.

"Okay?" Hotch interrupted her thoughts.

Again she responded with a whimper, acting as though he had kissed a sensitive spot.

"Here we go. I'm going to try to bring you a little closer to the headboard, just relax and don't move your head too much." He said.

He moved away from her neck and came back to face her, staring straight into her eyes and giving her a look that almost turned her on. Again he gave her a soft kiss on the lips, moving his hands to her hips and getting ready to move her.

JJ surprised Hotch by opening her mouth and sticking her tongue into his to prolong the kiss and sell it better to Sutter. They kissed again in the same manner and Hotch lifted her body up and moved her farther up the bed until her head was pressed against the headboard.

He softly dragged his hands up the side of her body until both hands were entwined in her hair. Carefully, he fanned her hair out until her left wrist was covered by it, trying to remain discreet the whole time.

JJ winced some as he did this as her hair was a little tangled. He continued to rub her head and face, trying to make it appear as sensual and erotic to Sutter as possible. JJ played along by letting out a soft gasp and momentarily closing her eyes. Hotchner continued to plant soft kisses on different parts of her face as he slid his right hand under her head.

"Try to keep your head up a little." He whispered in her ear.

He moved back to face her and gave her a look with his eyes. JJ moved her lips to his and they became involved in a make-out session as Hotchner moved his hidden hand to her wrist. As they kissed he fiddled with the knot, willing it to loosen.

Finally, when JJ thought they couldn't keep the show going for much longer, she felt the pressure on her wrist alleviate considerably. Hotchner made sure it was enough so that when the time came, she could just slide her hand right out of the rope and free her other hand in relatively little time.

They both took a deep breath and prepared for the other wrist so that it would take JJ even less time to work herself free when the time came. Hotchner ran his hand through her hair and was about to get to work on the wrist when he heard Sutter.

"Damn Hotchner, do you have a hair fetish or something? Let's get the show going here, we don't have all night. I'm getting bored and if I don't see some action soon, I might just have to jump in." Sutter chuckled.

JJ and Hotchner both exchanged glances. They both knew that the stalling was over and what he had done with her binds would have to be enough. They looked at each other for a long time; both knowing what was going to have to come next. Slowly, Hotchner made the first move.

ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

Morgan gradually awoke from his state of unconsciousness and tried to take in his surroundings. His ears felt like they were ringing and he had a pounding headache.

Slowly, he lifted his head from the side window and leaned it against the back of his seat. He could feel some blood trickling down the side of his face and it felt like there were some glass fragments imbedded in his scalp. He closed his eyes and slowly re-opened them, trying to regain focus of the blurry, spinning world in front of him. He had to have a concussion he thought. He glanced over at Elle and saw her slumped over, not moving.

"Elle!" he yelled as loud as he could.

She didn't respond.

He tried again a few more times.

Finally, she began to come around. She groaned as she lifted her head and tried to move from where she sat. She was unable to, she was pinned. The car that had run through the intersection had plowed into her side of the SUV, caving in the door and trapping her where she sat.

"Elle, can you move?" Morgan asked as he unbuckled his seatbelt and moved to help her as best he could.

"I…don't…know. I…think I'm…stuck here." she answered.

"What hurts?" Morgan asked as he put a supporting hand on her wrist.

"Everything I can feel." Elle chuckled.

"Okay, hang on I'm calling the paramedics." He said as he pulled his cell phone from the car floor and dialed in the number.

"Stay with me Elle." He said looking over at her as her eyes began to close.

She reopened them and listened as Derek called in the accident and asked for an ambulance. This was crazy, she thought, they were wasting precious time in trying to save JJ and Hotch. She couldn't move but Morgan could, he needed to get out of here.

"Go Morgan, get out of here." She said once he had hung up his phone.

"What?" he asked while shooting her a confused look.

"Go save JJ and Hotch, I'll be fine. It's barely a mile." She whispered.

"I'm not going anywhere Elle. Not until the police and paramedics get here. Someone has to make sure you stay awake and make it through this." He answered sternly.

"Don't be silly, Morgan. I'll be fine. You need to go while they still have a remote chance of being alive."

Morgan's fuzzy brain hesitated for a brief moment as he considered his options. She was right, what if they only had minutes to live and he spent them here waiting for an ambulance to show up? What if he was their last chance? But then again, what if they were already dead and he left her? What if she died right here because he left? Then they could have three dead agents. It was up to him to keep her alive until the paramedics came.

He didn't know what condition JJ and Hotch were in, but he did know what condition Elle was in. At least he could help make sure she stayed alive. That was his immediate responsibility; as much as he was tempted to leave and go save the others. He had made his decision as hard as it was, he would stay.

"I'm not going anywhere Elle, that's final."

ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

Spencer Reid stood his ground and glared at Rupert Gray as he was led out of the interrogation room in handcuffs by a police officer, ready to be booked for his court appearance and spend his time in jail where he belonged.

Gideon wasn't too far behind him and let out a hard sigh as he left the interrogation room, his eyes suddenly looking old and weary.

"Morgan and Elle are on their way to the address now, we should join them." Reid stated anxiously.

Gideon nodded as he tried to regain his bearings and relax from all of the stress he was feeling. He really was getting too old for this. Maybe this was it for him. He had pondered this fact many times before, but few cases had been like this one, and this case wasn't finished yet.

To be honest, he almost didn't want to be there when they found JJ and Hotchner. He had a bad feeling in the pit of his stomach that they might be dead, and he didn't think he could handle that. Not the sight of it, or the emotional baggage that it would bring. He already had trouble sleeping, too many nightmares. He had already lost countless agents; he didn't want to add anymore, even if it wasn't his fault.

Still, they were his friends and he had to be there for them, right up to the end, no matter how ugly or disturbing things may turn out. It was his job, the job he had worked for so many years, the countless lives he had saved; and hadn't.

To him it quite possibly came down to this. If he couldn't help save JJ and Hotch then his days at the FBI were done, he was no longer fit for the position he held. That's what it came down to.

"Gideon, are you okay?" Reid asked a little puzzled as Gideon's eyes stared off into the distance.

"What? Yeah, I'm fine Spencer. Let's go find JJ and Hotch and bring them home safely." Gideon said as he walked away.

Reid smiled; those were just the words he had been eagerly anticipating to hear.

ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

Hotchner ran his hands softly down JJ's body, caressing her beautiful skin. JJ stared directly into his eyes as he did so, remembering the words he had said to her earlier. He traced circles around her belly as his mind continued to race.

He couldn't actually do this could he? What were his options? How could he keep from doing this to JJ without having Sutter do it to her?

He looked at JJ. She returned his gaze with a questioning stare. His hands had stopped on her hips and he wasn't moving; he had frozen.

"Hotch, please." She whispered weakly.

No she didn't really want Hotch to make love to her, especially not with Sutter watching. But she didn't want the alternative even more; she had already been through that. She felt safer with Hotch; she knew he'd do his best not to hurt her like Sutter had. Still Hotchner didn't move; he couldn't bring himself to, his brain felt like it had stopped functioning.

"C'mon Hotchner, do it!" Sutter yelled as he leaned forward in his chair.

Hotchner heard him, but still didn't move.

"Hotch…please." JJ almost pleaded with him now.

Suddenly, she heard Sutter cock his gun.

"Now Hotchner!" he yelled as he aimed his gun.

Hotchner closed his eyes and bowed his head. JJ's eyes went wide and she yelped in fear as she watched Sutter aim and fire. Hotchner was suddenly brought out of his thoughts by a searing pain that came from his leg. The bullet had grazed his right calf and barely missed JJ as she felt the heat of the bullet pass by one of her legs and go through the mattress. Hotchner grimaced in pain as he glanced at his leg and saw that it was bleeding.

"That was a warning shot Hotchner. Next one will be to kill and I'll leave you two to wonder who it will be. Now get going!" Sutter said as he remained standing, gun aimed at them.

Hotchner turned back to face JJ with a sad, almost defeated look in his eyes. He had wanted to do all he could to avoid this, he had hoped that Sutter would just come over and pull him back to the chair, giving JJ time to try to escape. Instead it was apparent that Sutter was determined to have this happen and any moves to escape would have to come after.

JJ also knew that they were out of options for the time being and gave him a sad, accepting look with her eyes. Hotchner let out a deep sigh and JJ closed her eyes as his fingers gently pulled down her panties.

"Look at me JJ." Hotch whispered to her.

"Remember what I said, ignore everything else." He spoke to her softly as he gave her a gentle kiss.

JJ reopened her eyes and kept them focused on Hotch, trying to get rid of the embarrassment she felt at being exposed to him.

"Please forgive me, JJ. I'm going to do what I can to make this easier." He said as he looked to her for her approval.

She breathed in deeply and nodded. He reached down and gently touched her, doing his best to turn her on without hurting her. He had noticed the bruising on her inner thighs; confirming what he had already suspected but refused to mention. It made him want to kill Sutter all the more.

JJ gasped as he touched her gently, trying to make the experience as sensual for her as he could possibly manage. Soon she felt caught up in the moment, and for a brief second it almost felt real to her. Her cheeks became flush as she felt hot.

Hotchner knew she was just about as ready as she ever would be. He moved to take his boxers off, almost tempted to glare back at Sutter and challenge him, but not wanting to take the risk of something going wrong or breaking the bond he had established with JJ. If he was going to do it, now was the best time to do it while hurting her as little as possible. Hotchner caressed JJ's cheek gently.

"Are you ready?" he asked her caringly.

JJ took a quivering deep breath before answering.

"Yes."

"Okay, stay with me. Look at my eyes, no where else." He said to her.

JJ nodded as she felt him slowly enter her. She gasped and did all she could to avoid letting out the pained scream that was in the base of her throat. A couple of tears trickled down her cheeks and Hotchner could tell she was in a good deal of pain. They began to move in a slow motion, some of the pain starting to subside as JJ continued to look solely into Hotch's caring eyes. She knew he was doing the best he could to not hurt her.

Soon she found herself lost in his eyes as they moved together. Hotch was careful to pace himself, to make sure he didn't forget this was JJ and that he didn't want to hurt her. They had both almost forgotten that Sutter was there watching them.

Sutter watched as the two agents went at it in a rather fluid motion, working together. He could tell that they were almost enjoying it. Then he decided to have a little more fun, he just couldn't help himself.

He grabbed the cell phone he had placed on the dresser. He stood up and walked over close to where the agents were going at it.

The room was dark, but there was some light illuminating it from the moonlight shining in through the window. Carefully and quietly he pointed the phone at the agents and snapped a couple of pictures with it.

Grinning evilly to himself, Sutter found the person listed in the phone who he wanted to send the pictures to. He clicked on the name and hit send, smiling to himself. That should be a sufficient insurance policy in case things don't go as planned, he thought to himself. He put the phone back on the dresser and returned to the chair, watching the rest of the show.

ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

Reid and Gideon were now in the SUV, racing towards Brooklyn in hopes of saving their teammates. Reid had tried to insist on driving, but Gideon would hear none of it, knowing how emotional he was feeling. Hell, he was feeling very emotional himself.

Still, it was nothing compared to what he suspected Reid was feeling. He knew Reid had some strong feelings for JJ, even if the feelings weren't completely reciprocated. The fact was she had been missing for quite a while now, and her odds of being alive had decreased substantially. He knew that Reid was likely going through the statistics of her survival in his head at this very moment. He didn't want to risk letting Reid drive when he was so distracted, even though he was quite distracted himself.

Reid was still young; he didn't have the experience of controlling his emotions as well as Gideon had. That's where Gideon had gotten his calm demeanor from, years of practice. Just at that moment his thoughts were interrupted by the sound of Reid's cell phone going off. It was Garcia.

"Hey Garcia, what is it?" Reid asked.

"There's a… been an accident. I just got the call. It's Morgan and Elle." She said sounding rather upset.

"What!? What happened?" Reid asked stunned as Gideon listened intently to what Garcia was saying.

"They were about a mile from East Ave. when a car ran a red light and plowed into the passenger side of their SUV." Garcia said sadly.

"Are they alright?" Reid asked nervously.

"I don't know too much. Morgan called me after he called the paramedics. He claims to be fine. He said Elle is trapped though, and her condition is deteriorating. He wanted me to let you know so you could take the back way around so the accident wouldn't hold you up. I'll give you the directions. He said he'll meet you there as soon as possible." Garcia said.

Reid looked at Gideon with a stunned look on his face. He knew that they were still at least twenty minutes away and that it was now up to them to save JJ and Hotch. Garcia read the directions to Reid over the phone who wrote them down on a piece of paper.

"Thanks Garcia, we'll get them back safely, I promise." He tried to sound as reassuring as he possibly could.

The fact was he didn't know if he believed it anymore himself. It seemed as though almost everything that could go wrong had. It almost felt unreal. He had almost lost hope, but then he remembered what he had promised himself; not to give up hope, for JJ's sake.

"She's alive Spencer, I know it." Gideon said glancing at the fidgeting agent.

"You really think so?" Reid looked at him with a look of hope in his eyes.

"Yes." Gideon lied.

ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

JJ and Hotchner continued to rock in motion together, lost in each other's eyes. JJ began to let out quiet moans that alternated between pain and pleasure. The pace picked up and soon they both climaxed; the experience was mercifully over.

Hotch gently and carefully pulled out of her. The bond was broken and JJ looked away, she couldn't hold it any longer; she quietly began to cry. Hotch stroked her head and gave her a soft kiss.

"I'm sorry JJ." He whispered to her but the words felt dead, as if they couldn't take away what they had just done, even to him.

JJ tried to look at him to let him know she understood, that he had no choice, but she just couldn't. She just wanted to be left alone, by everyone. She didn't really blame Hotch; he had done all he could to make the experience as comfortable as he could for her.

It was just that she had enough of everything and she felt embarrassed. Her heart was overwhelmed with hate for Sutter and for what he had put her through. If she had one thing to live for right now, it was to kill Sutter, to make him suffer to no end.

"JJ?" Hotch asked her softly as her eyes had a spaced-out look to them.

JJ snapped out of her daze and was suddenly very scared by her thoughts. What had she been thinking? Had she really just thought what she thought she had? Could she really be that evil? What had happened to her? A couple more tears trickled down her cheeks. She was losing the person she had once known, her innocence felt almost completely gone.

"JJ I really need you to focus, he's coming over. It's almost time." Hotch said to her as he pulled her panties back up, giving her what little decency he could provide.

JJ watched as he pulled his boxers back on and looked to confirm that she was ready. JJ gave a slight nod in return. She didn't feel ready, her mind felt cloudy, she was having trouble focusing and keeping with reality. She just wanted to get lost in her thoughts, be as far away from here as possible. It was too late for that now, Sutter had just made his way over to the bed, gun in hand.

**A/N: Well, there it is. I know it was long and very dark. These last two chapters were by far the hardest to write, especially from a content standpoint. I wanted to make it dark, but without making it too dark or crossing the line. To me it seemed like a very fine line to be treading. I debated for a long time whether or not to have JJ and Hotchner go through with it, but decided that it would open more doors from a creativity standpoint. I think it will present an opportunity to potentially affect team dynamics as well as the relationship the two characters have with each other. I know I may be rambling, but I just wanted to get the point of this part across. It wasn't just to be disgusting. Personally, I still don't feel completely comfortable with it and may change it some in the future. So please, let me know what you think; don't hold back. Your thoughts and reviews are greatly appreciated and I do read them. Thanks.**


	16. Chapter 16

**A/N: Hey guys sorry about the wait, exams are finally over but I've been working a lot and getting ready for the holidays. I'm a very busy person. Anyway, I just wanted to say thanks for all of the reviews; the feedback was amazing. With that said, here's the next chapter.**

Morgan watched as Elle drifted in and out of consciousness, worried about how bad her injuries truly were. He wondered where the hell the paramedics were as he did his best to keep her awake with small talk and light-humored jokes. It felt like an eternity, but finally he could hear the sirens in the distance.

"Elle, the paramedics are here, stay with me. You're doing great so far." He said to her as she grunted in response.

Morgan stepped out of the SUV as the ambulance approached the scene of the accident accompanied by a couple of police cars. The two paramedics hurriedly jumped out of the ambulance to meet him, noticing the blood that had now almost dried on the side of his head.

"Sir, are you okay?" one of them asked while scanning him over with his eyes.

"Yeah, don't worry about me I'm fine. It's my friend, she's not in good shape and she's pinned inside. I don't know the extent of her injuries." Morgan responded.

"What about the occupant of the other car?" one of the officers asked as he walked over.

"I already checked for a pulse, he's dead." Morgan responded with a little remorse as the paramedics made their way to the SUV. One hopped in the driver's side to check on Elle and talk to her. Not long after, he re-emerged from the vehicle.

"She's in rough shape as you said sir, but we can't move her without dislodging the car from the SUV and removing the door. It's going to take some time we need a tow truck in here as soon as possible." He said, directing the last part to one of the police officers.

The officer nodded and called for a truck. Morgan went over to one of the other officers to tell him exactly what had happened and who he was.

"I'm Derek Morgan I'm with the FBI's Behavioral Analysis Unit."

"Peter Scott." The officer nodded as they shook hands.

"Can you tell me exactly what happened Agent Morgan?"

"We were driving to a location in pursuit of a suspect in the case we are working when the driver of the car ran the intersection and smashed into us. There was nothing I could do, I didn't have any warning." Morgan stated as the officer just nodded in response.

"Listen, now that you guys are here, I really need to get out of here. Two of my fellow agents are being held by a suspected serial killer less than a mile from here; do you think you can give me a ride?" Morgan asked hopefully.

"Oh, you're part of that case that's been on TV. Some of the guys in my precinct are out there working it too." Scott answered as it dawned on him just how serious things were.

"That's the one, can you help me? I'm really short on time." Morgan said as he watched the tow truck arrive.

"Yeah sure thing, let me just tell my partner I'm leaving him here. I'll call for some back up too." He said as he walked away.

Morgan nodded his appreciation and quickly walked over to the SUV to check on Elle. One of the paramedics was sitting in the SUV with her, doing his best to keep her stable and conscious.

"Hey Elle, how are you doing?" Morgan asked cautiously.

"I've seen better days, but I'll be fine." She smiled.

"Okay, the tow truck is here and these guys are going to do their best to make sure you make it out of this alive." He started.

"I'm fine Morgan. Go find Hotch and JJ already, you're wasting time."

He smiled at her.

"Okay, see you soon Elle." He said as she nodded.

Morgan made his way back towards Officer Scott's cruiser after waving off another paramedic who insisted on checking him.

"Ready to go?" he asked.

"Yeah, all set."

"Alright, let's go. No sirens, we don't want to scare this guy." Morgan said to Officer Scott as he hopped in the cruiser.

He gave the officer the directions and they were speeding the short distance to where Morgan hoped they would find Hotch and JJ.

ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

"Well that was fun, huh?" Sutter smiled as he walked over.

Hotchner and JJ shot him angry looks in response and he chuckled.

"So tell me Jennifer, who was better?" he laughed as he grabbed Hotchner by the arm and lifted him from the bed, keeping the gun on him.

She didn't respond, glaring at him with hatred in her eyes.

"Don't want to say huh? Worried you might hurt someone's feelings? Hotchner's a big boy, I'm sure he can take it, right Aaron?" he laughed as Hotchner gave him a death stare.

"Or maybe you just need me to give you a refresher of what I have to offer." He smiled while looking her over with his eyes.

Inside JJ was as scared as she had ever been, but she refused to look away from him, refused to let him win. She would make him pay; she was just waiting for him to turn around. Then he did turn away, leading Hotchner back towards the chair.

"She's so beautiful, isn't she Hotchner? Almost more so than your wife. I was thinking of just killing her and taking your wife and son and calling it a day. But I have to say, I've had so much fun with her I might just keep her too. There's no rule on how many wives you can have, at least not where I'm going to take her." He laughed maliciously as they were now back at the chair and Hotchner was wondering where JJ was.

Sutter pushed him forward hard, sending him toppling face first over the chair and into the wall behind it. Just as he slowly turned around to look back at Sutter, he saw the man collapse to his knees in pain. Now was their chance.

ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

JJ had struggled more with the restraints than she had expected. She had slid her left hand out easy enough, but she was right-handed and trying to untie the rope with only her left hand had turned into a bigger challenge than anticipated. Her time had almost run out when she had finally loosened the rope enough to painfully pull her hand free.

She jumped off the bed as quickly and quietly as she could, making her way towards Sutter and Hotchner who were almost at the chair. She would have grabbed an object to club Sutter over the head with if she could, but nothing was available. She watched as Sutter shoved Hotchner through the chair and knew she had to act.

She put her FBI training and soccer skills to good use. She wound up and kicked Sutter as hard as she possibly could in the back of his right knee, causing it to collapse and sending him crashing to the ground. Somehow, he had managed to maintain his grip on the gun he held as he tried to brace himself for the hard impact.

JJ didn't even hesitate. She kicked him again and again, ignoring how much it hurt her bare feet, taking out some of the pain and anger he had caused her. Sutter tried to aim his gun at her, but JJ noticed and kicked it out of his hand, sending it flying across the room.

"How does that feel!?" she asked as she landed a hard kick to his privates, causing Sutter to crumple into a ball and let out a howl of pain.

She continued to barrage him with kicks as Hotchner tried to recover from his head-first dive into the wall. It wasn't enough though as Sutter was able to recover, grabbing one of JJ's legs and painfully sending her crashing to the floor.

He crawled over to her, knocking the wind out of her with a hard punch to the stomach. JJ gasped and tried to catch her breath as he slapped her face hard and grabbed a handful of her hair, slamming the back of her head on the hardwood floor. JJ's world became hazy and she did her best to fight him off, but he was much bigger and stronger than her.

"You're going to pay for that, bitch."

Sutter reared back to send his fist through her face, when his arm was grabbed and pulled farther back at a painful angle as he let out a pained scream. Hotchner continued to twist his arm as he pulled Sutter off JJ, hoping it would be enough to allow her to recover; he wasn't sure that he could take Sutter by himself.

Sutter continued to writhe in pain and swear before turning his body enough to give Hotchner a hard kick that sent him back to the ground. Hotchner rolled away before Sutter could grab him and get him at a disadvantage. They were both facing each other on hands and knees.

"C'mon Agent Hotchner, bring it! I've been waiting years for this moment!" Sutter snarled as he charged Hotchner.

What came next was a flurry of punches exchanged by both men. They were both weakening the other, but neither was actually winning. Hotchner was fighting for his life and his family, Sutter for revenge and the memory of his dead brother.

As they continued to roll around fighting, JJ tried to regain her senses, telling herself that Hotch needed her help. She had to move. As she rolled over she noticed the gun on the floor only a few feet from where she was laying. It was the gun Sutter had dropped.

JJ slowly picked herself up and crawled over to the gun, hesitating just a little before picking up the cold metal in her hands. She turned around and noticed that Sutter was now on top of Hotch, pummeling him. This was her chance to end this once and for all.

**A/N: Well, hope you liked. I'm hoping to update at least once more before the holidays, but I can't make any promises. Any and all feedback is welcome.**


	17. Chapter 17

**A/N: Hey guys, once again thanks for all of the great reviews, here's the next chapter.**

JJ's hands were shaking as she raised the gun and pointed it in Sutter's direction. Sutter was on top of Hotchner and assaulting him with a flurry of punches to his body and face. She could tell that it wouldn't be long until Hotch lost consciousness. He was doing his best to fight Sutter off, but he was at a major disadvantage.

JJ cocked the gun as her hands continued to shake. The sound of the gun cocking caught Sutter's attention, as he paused and looked over to where he had heard the sound. When he saw JJ standing there pointing the gun at him, his face gave away a look of surprise, and then he smirked.

"Go ahead pretty, shoot me." Sutter laughed evilly as he stood up and moved away from Hotchner who remained lying on the ground.

Blood trickled from his mouth and nose as he took a step towards JJ. Hotchner had held his own fighting Sutter, at least for a while. JJ hesitated before lowering the gun just a little.

"Yeah, that's what I thought. You can't do it. You're not a killer." He laughed.

"Now Jennifer, you're going to do exactly what I tell you to." He said as he took another step forward.

Hotchner forced himself to sit up and watch the exchange that was going on in front of him. His body hurt from the beating he had taken, but he didn't want to lose consciousness; he had to make sure they both got out of this alive. He watched nervously as Sutter took another step towards JJ who continued to shakily point the gun at him.

"It's over Sutter, give up." Hotchner said in a raspy voice.

Sutter looked at him and laughed.

"It'll never be over Hotchner, not until I'm dead." He said as he turned back to JJ.

"You better shoot me Jennifer; you know that's what you want. If you don't I'll just go to jail, and we both know I'll find a way out. And the first person I'll come to see is you. I can just see it now, tasting that luscious body of yours, having you there to satisfy my every need." He laughed evilly as he licked his blood-stained lips and took another step forward, now just a couple of feet from her.

He stared deep into her eyes, noticing the familiar look of hate and fear in them. He moved to take another step.

"Don't… move!" she shouted as she raised the gun at him with renewed strength.

He laughed at her.

"C'mon baby, do it. I'll make sure you regret it later if you don't." He began to step towards her again.

"I will kill you!" she shouted, her voice shaking with fear.

"Stop wasting time, do it!" he continued to push her. "Kill me!"

"JJ, don't give in to what he wants, don't let him get off easy. Don't let him win." Hotchner pleaded with her as she aimed the gun at Sutter's head.

"Back up Glen!" JJ shouted at him.

"I don't think so; you don't have it in you Jennifer." He said as he stepped forward.

JJ aimed down and fired, hitting him in the foot. Sutter fell to the floor and let out a howl of pain while he instinctively grabbed his foot. JJ took a couple of steps back to increase the amount of distance between her and Sutter.

"You bitch!" he cried out as he stared at her with intense anger in his eyes.

"I warned you, you didn't listen." JJ said with more confidence and authority than she had felt in a while.

She was finally in control again, and it felt good. Sutter stayed down on the ground but after taking a moment to shake off the pain, he chuckled to himself.

"You can't win Jennifer, I already have."

"What are you talking about?" she asked as some fear began to creep back into her voice.

"Whether you let me live or not, I'll always be with you. I'll always be in your memory. I fucked you, and I had a damn good time doing it too. What guy is going to want you now, after what I've done to you huh? You're dirty, you're nothing. Whenever you get with another guy you're going to remember me. You're going to remember what I did to you. You're always going to compare him to me." He laughed maliciously.

Tears began to trickle down JJ's cheeks as she raised the gun towards him again.

"You'll always be mine Jennifer, I'll make sure of it if you let me live. We'll always have a special connection with one another, and there's nothing you can do that will change that. You're mine, you'll always be mine." He snarled at her.

"I hate you, you bastard!" she cried as she aimed the gun at him.

"JJ, don't!" Hotchner shouted as she fired.

ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

"There it is!" Morgan shouted as they came to an old white house in the middle of the neighborhood that East Ave. ran through.

Officer Scott pulled up to the house and stopped the car. They both stepped out and cautiously approached the front door of the house, guns drawn.

There was nothing spectacular about the house or the neighborhood that it was in. It was a three story white house in the middle of a lower class neighborhood. The paint on the outside of the house was chipped and the windows were covered in filth.

Morgan had glanced around at the other buildings as they drove through the neighborhood and had noticed that many of them had either been condemned or abandoned. It was a perfect place to keep someone captive; a poor, secluded type of neighborhood where people would pay little mind to what was happening around them and danger lurked on a daily basis.

Morgan walked up to the door and waited for Officer Scott to take position behind him. Once he was ready, Morgan stepped back and gave the door a swift kick, breaking it down. The door flew open and Morgan slowly entered the house, the police officer right behind him.

The interior was even more worn than the exterior of the building, and it was accompanied by a strong musty smell. There was a kitchen, a living room and a bathroom on the ground floor; that was it. All three rooms were in poor condition and looked as though they weren't used very often. Hell, it was quite possible that no one actually lived here Morgan thought. All of these facts made it a perfect place for the unsub to be hiding.

They carefully searched the three rooms to make sure everything was clear. Once they were both convinced that everything was, they made their way towards the staircase. The stairs were old and the railing was weak and rotting as they slowly walked up the creaky steps. They were trying to be stealthy, but Morgan was worried that the stairs were causing them to make too much noise.

Just as they were halfway up the set of stairs, a gun shot rang out, the sound resonating throughout the house. They both jumped back as an instinctive reflex.

Morgan looked at Officer Scott who nodded in return as they quickened their pace up the stairs towards the third floor in the direction of where they had heard the shot. Morgan's heart sank as a second shot rang out just as they made it to the top of the staircase.

ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

Reid tried to keep himself from fidgeting as they had now made their way onto East Ave. He looked out his window intently at the numbers on the different buildings, waiting for 271 to appear.

"Reid, there it is." Gideon said as Reid turned to see where he was gesturing to.

It was a white three-story house and there was a police car parked outside. Reid felt his heart race at an even faster pace if that were possible; he knew this was the place. He knew this is where they would find Hotch and JJ, dead or alive.

"It looks like someone might already be here; we're going to have to be careful." Gideon said to Reid as they stepped out of the SUV.

Reid nodded and they began to make their way to the house when the sound of a gun shot pierced the air. Reid felt a lump form in his throat and he felt as though he had suddenly lost the ability to breathe. A second shot soon followed and Gideon and Reid both ran for the house.

ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

Glen Sutter's body jolted backward from the force of the first bullet as it tore into the top of his left shoulder. The second bullet had barely missed him, coming to a stop in the far wall behind him. Sutter lay on the ground immobilized, in almost too much pain to move and losing a lot of blood from the wound in his shoulder, just a few inches above his heart.

JJ slowly approached where he was laying, gun still aimed at him.

"JJ, please, it's over. Let him get the punishment he really deserves, not this." Hotchner pleaded with her.

He knew he couldn't relate to what she had been through or what she was currently feeling, but he was trying to protect her from herself. He didn't want her to do something she would regret. He didn't want her to do something that could ruin her life further or give her worse memories of what she was capable of. What everyone's capable of deep down; the darkest recesses of the human being. He didn't want her to experience that. He didn't want her to be like Glen Sutter, he wanted her to be like Jennifer Jareau.

"Please JJ." He said again as she now hovered over Sutter, the gun still aimed at him.

"C'mon Jennifer, finish me off." Sutter winced in pain as he looked up at her.

JJ paused as she kept the gun on him, not sure of what she was about to do next. She looked at Hotch; he had stopped trying to talk to her and now just stared back at her, conveying a certain warmth with his eyes.

For a reason she couldn't explain, the look filled her with comfort, and the tears stopped pouring out of her eyes. Slowly, the corners of her mouth curved up slightly and she looked at Sutter with what almost looked like a smile.

"No, I'm not going to kill you. You've got it wrong. I may not remember you, but you'll always have to remember me." She finally said.

"I'm too good for you Glen. You won't get what you want; you'll get what you deserve." She said and for the first time she felt as though their ordeal was finally over.

She had taken down Glen Sutter. The man who had put her through so much, caused her so much pain. The man who had tried to destroy her and take away the person she was. She had persevered until the end, he didn't get what he wanted and he hadn't won. She had won. She was standing and he wasn't. She was still alive, she could get on with her life and his was finished. It was all finally over.

Her thoughts were abruptly interrupted by the sound of the bedroom door being broken down and Morgan and a police officer bursting in, guns drawn.

Morgan stopped and stared in shock as JJ was standing there with a gun in her hand and she was alive! She was standing over who he assumed was Glen Sutter, laying on the ground in pain.

Hotchner was off to the side, looking rather beat up but also alive. Morgan almost couldn't believe it. It was a whole lot better than the alternative he had been dreading but almost expected to see.

"JJ, its Morgan. You can put the gun down, it's over." He tried to say with some encouragement.

He was almost as surprised when she didn't hesitate in dropping the gun, making sure it was a good distance from Sutter. Morgan and Officer Scott both lowered their weapons in response, glad that the potential situation was defused.

JJ walked over to Hotchner and helped him up as Morgan and the officer went to cuff Sutter as police sirens sounded in the distance. Hotch grimaced as he accidentally put too much weight on his sore leg. JJ held him tight to give him some support and then gave him a hug.

"Thanks Hotch." She whispered into his ear before anyone could notice.

They both exchanged a look and pulled away just as Gideon and Reid entered the room carefully. They looked around and were more than pleased to see that it was over and that both Hotchner and JJ were still alive. They both smiled and Hotch and JJ gave weak smiles in return.

"Glad to see you're both alive." Gideon said with a very relieved look on his face.

"We're glad to be alive." Hotch answered back.

Reid tried not to stare too much, but he was already trying to make sense of the scene around him. It was the problem with being a genius, he was always thinking. They were in a bedroom, the unsub was only in his underwear and so were Hotch and JJ; that wasn't a good sign, it implied too much in his mind.

He tried his best not to stare at JJ who was only in her underwear and a half-buttoned blouse, one of her breasts almost falling out of her bra. The only time she looked like that was in his fantasy world, not now. Between that and the look in her eyes that she had been trying to hide, Reid almost felt sick to his stomach about what likely happened to her. At least she was still alive, he told himself.

Just then more police entered the room as well as some paramedics. Morgan purposely led Sutter out of the room roughly, as the man continued to grumble in pain and swear.

The paramedics approached Hotch and JJ and wrapped a blanket around each of them, giving them a bit more cover. Slowly and painfully Hotch and JJ walked out of the room that had been their personal hell. They were both emotionally and physically drained, and very happy to be leaving.

Reid went to say something to JJ as she passed him. He wanted to hug her, to comfort her and tell her that everything would be okay, but the words wouldn't come. All he could do was give her a weak smile when she noticed him staring at her and she responded with a quick half-smile.

Gideon put his hand on Reid's shoulder when he noticed the look of distress on the younger agent's face.

"They're safe now. It may take them a while to recover, but at least they have that chance." Gideon said as Reid looked at him.

He paused as if to say something, but just nodded and slowly left the room, Gideon not far behind. They would let the police clean up the rest of the mess. It was over, and they all just wanted to go home.

As Hotchner and JJ made their way outside, the smell of the cool air and the feeling of freedom never felt so good before. They both exchanged a knowing look as they approached the ambulances that were waiting for them. Hotchner moved towards the one that was closest to him when JJ unexpectedly grabbed him, a new look of fear in her eyes.

"Give us a minute." She said to the two paramedics who were waiting to help them.

"What is it JJ?" Hotchner asked her, rather confused.

"Hotch, I don't want them to know." She said quietly as her eyes went from his and focused on the ground in front of her.

"You don't want who to know what?" he asked, still not entirely sure of what she was getting at.

"I don't want the rest of the team to know what Sutter made us do. I realize Gideon will likely have to know, but I don't want the whole team knowing, at least not yet." She said as she met his eyes again.

"Please."

Hotchner looked around for a moment as he tried to figure out if there was a way for him to meet her request.

"Okay, I'll talk to Gideon. I'll see what I can do. I'll try to see if there's a way we can keep it out of our personal files but it's going to be difficult. I'll have to talk to Strauss too. I can't make any promises on how it'll go." He looked at her.

JJ's eyes gained a happier glint to them.

"Thanks Hotch." She said with appreciation.

With that they both walked to the ambulances that were waiting to take them to the hospital. The paramedics helped them in and soon they were on their way as Gideon, Reid, and Morgan stood together and watched as they drove away.

**A/N: Hope you enjoyed. I have to admit I wrote this chapter more quickly than the others. Hopefully there aren't too many errors or inconsistencies. If there are please let me know and I'll fix them. I really wanted to get another chapter up before Christmas. Any and all thoughts are welcome. Merry Christmas!**


End file.
